The UN General Assembly (UNGA) on Tuesday adopted a resolution calling for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the occupied Palestinian territory, with Pakistan, which voted in favour of the text, reiterating that Palestinians must be allowed to exercise their inalienable right to self-determination.

The resolution, titled ‘Peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine’, was adopted with 151 countries voting in favour, 11 voting against and 11 abstaining, according to the summary posted by the UN.

According to the summary, the UNGA, through the resolution, “stressed the need for urgent, collective efforts to launch credible negotiations on all final status issues in the Middle East peace process and called for the timely convening of an international conference in Moscow — as envisioned by Security Council resolution 1850 (2008) — to advance a just, lasting and comprehensive peace settlement”.

“The Assembly also called on both parties to act responsibly, urgently reverse negative trends and create the conditions necessary for a credible political horizon and the advancement of peace efforts,” it said.

It also called on Israel to “comply strictly with its international law obligations, including by ending its unlawful presence in the occupied Palestinian territory, ceasing all new settlement activities and evacuating all settlers from the occupied Palestinian territory”.

Addressing Israel’s presence in the West Bank, the UNGA “rejected any attempt at demographic or territorial change in Gaza and stressed the importance of unifying the strip with the West Bank under the Palestinian Authority without delay”.

“Additionally, the Assembly called for Israel’s withdrawal from the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, the realisation of the Palestinian people’s inalienable rights — primarily the right to self-determination — and a just resolution of the problem of Palestinian refugees,” it said.

Speaking during the UNGA debate, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN Asim Iftikhar Ahmed said, “Today’s resolution is more than a statement of principle. It is a reminder that the world must now turn promises into action.”

Calling for the realisation of an independent Palestinian state, Ambassador Iftikhar said, “Pakistan’s solidarity with the Palestinian people is steadfast, and we stand with them in their legitimate struggle for dignity, justice and self-determination.”

He further said that voting in favour of the resolution reflected Pakistan’s “long-standing and principled position on this matter”.

The UN envoy further said that the momentum generated at Sharm El-Sheikh, where the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas was signed, must be sustained, particularly by advancing Palestinian-led governance, reconstruction and institution building, emphasising the role of the Palestinian Authority as “central”.

“Peace cannot be shaped without the direct involvement and ownership of the Palestinian people,” he stressed.

He further said that the Gaza ceasefire must be “implemented fully, with no unilateral actions or military activity”, calling for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

He added that full humanitarian access should also be guaranteed to the Palestinian enclave.

“With winter approaching and large parts of Gaza destroyed, the population needs sustained life-saving assistance.

“Any obstruction of aid violates international humanitarian law and must not be allowed under any pretext,” he said, adding that reconstruction of the ravaged Gaza Strip should begin without delay.

He said that there must be no annexation, no forced displacement, and no division of occupied lands, adding that Gaza’s territorial integrity and its contiguity with the West Bank were fundamental to a viable, sovereign and independent Palestinian state.

He further said that all settlement activity should stop.

“Efforts to change the demographic or legal character of the occupied territories, including around Al-Haram Al-Sharif, are illegal and must end,” he said.

He added that in order to “break the cycle of violence”, it was necessary to end the Israeli occupation of all Arab territories, including in Palestine, Syria and Lebanon.

“The imperative of a political horizon — a credible, time-bound political process anchored in relevant UN resolutions, leading to a sovereign, independent and contiguous State of Palestine based on pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital,” he said.

• Decision marks rare policy reversal for Modi govt.
• Congress, tech companies question move’s legality.
• Indian govt says backtracking due to app’s popularity.
  

India’s government on Wednesday scrapped an order to smartphone makers to preload a state-run cybersecurity app on all new devices after an outcry from politicians, privacy advocates, and global tech companies over surveillance fears.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government had privately told companies, including Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi, on November 28 to preload new phones with an app that cannot be deleted called Sanchar Saathi within 90 days, Reuters was first to report on Monday.

“Government has decided not to make the pre-installation mandatory for mobile manufacturers,” India’s communications ministry said in a press statement on Wednesday.

The move comes after protests from opposition parties over the issue, while newspaper editorials joined privacy advocates in denouncing the move. 

The government also found itself at odds with phone manufacturers, as Apple and Samsung had plans not to comply with the directive, sources said.

Just a day earlier, government ministers had defended the plan, saying the app only helps track and block stolen phones and prevents them from being misused.

“The app is secure and purely meant to help citizens from bad actors in the cyber world,” the government said in its statement on Wednesday, saying it was backtracking because the app was gaining popularity.

Data from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower showed a 13% jump in daily downloads to 78,000 on Monday.

Political protests, privacy concerns

The u-turn will nonetheless come as an embarrassment for Modi’s government, and follows a reversal last year on a laptop import licensing policy after lobbying by US officials, which would have required companies to obtain licences for shipments.

Earlier on Wednesday, senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said in a notice to Parliament that the government needed to clarify the legal authority for “mandating a non-removable app” and called for a debate on privacy and security risks.

“The grave, serious and real apprehension is also that such a compulsorily installed app can have a backdoor, thereby absolutely compromising the data and privacy of the user,” he added.

Free speech rights group Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) welcomed Wednesday’s move but said it was waiting for a legal order explaining the decision.

Modi’s plan had little precedent, according to industry sources. Russia may be the only other known example. Moscow in August ordered that a state-backed messenger application called MAX, a rival to WhatsApp that critics say could be used to track users, must be pre-installed on all mobile phones and tablets.

Modi has faced criticism over issues of privacy before. In 2020, his government came under fire for a Covid-19 contact-tracing app compulsory for use by office workers. That measure was later diluted to a request when privacy advocates protested.

US President Donald Trump came under renewed scrutiny after appearing to struggle to stay awake during a televised cabinet meeting, only moments after insisting he remained “sharper than I was 25 years ago”.

The incident followed his criticism of recent reporting in The New York Times, suggesting he had slowed during his second term.

Trump started the meeting by criticising the media for what he considered unfair coverage and brushing off concerns about his age and health. But as cabinet members started giving in-depth evaluations of his policies, cameras showed the 79-year-old US president regularly closing his eyes for long stretches of time and frequently standing still for a few seconds.

The signs of drowsiness became more evident as successive secretaries addressed the room. Footage showed Trump’s eyes drooping as senior officials, including the commerce, agriculture and treasury secretaries, delivered their remarks.

The most pronounced moments occurred while Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke from a seat directly beside the president, with the close camera angle highlighting Trump’s prolonged stillness and apparent dozing.

The White House denied that Trump had nodded off, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt insisting he had been “listening attentively” throughout what she described as a “three-hour marathon meeting”. She praised the president’s engagement and said he later fielded questions from reporters.

This is the second time in a month that Trump has appeared visibly drowsy during an official event. Footage from a November 6 Oval Office gathering showed him fighting to keep his eyes open for nearly 20 minutes. Those images subsequently went viral and prompted fresh debate about his stamina.

While brief lapses in alertness are not unusual for someone of his age, the scenes carry political resonance given Trump’s long-standing attacks on former president Joe Biden, whom he regularly mocked as “Sleepy Joe”. Trump frequently criticised Biden for appearing tired in public and had previously insisted that a president falling asleep in view of cameras was “unbecoming”.