The 193-member United Nations General Assembly is expected to vote Tuesday on a resolution urging an immediate Gaza ceasefire, diplomats announced Sunday. This comes after the U.S. vetoed a similar UN Security Council measure Friday. The Assembly resolution would demand an immediate humanitarian truce in the Israel-Hamas conflict ravaging Gaza, echoing an October General Assembly text passed with 121 votes. The upcoming vote follows weeks of rising pressure for the UN to act and intervene on the crisis since the Security Council stall. But any Assembly action lacks the Security Council's legal enforceability and remains largely symbolic amid fraught Israel-Palestine politics. Still, the majority support for October's ceasefire call indicates likely Assembly approval again.

Former President Donald Trump declared Saturday he will not testify again in the New York civil fraud trial threatening his real estate empire. Trump had been summoned to appear Monday as a defense witness in state Attorney General Letitia James' lawsuit alleging Trump Organization business fraud. But in an all-caps social media post, Trump maintained he had already "successfully and conclusively" testified last month and had nothing more to contribute. By refusing to appear and complete his testimony, Trump risks jeopardizing his self-cultivated image as a triumphant businessman amid allegations of extensive financial misconduct at his firm. But the defiant ex-president insisted he already covered everything relevant and explicitly stated "I WILL NOT BE TESTIFYING ON MONDAY."

Despite ongoing border talks between Bhutan and China, new satellite images reveal Beijing has continued unauthorized settlement activity in Bhutan's strategically located Jakarlung Valley. Experts say the sharpest images released of the region show Bhutan may have to accept the fait accompli imposed by China 50km from the Bhutan-Arunachal border. Over two years, the images demonstrate a Chinese civilian and military buildup establishing villages and outposts in the valley based on questionable historical grazing claims. With the area holding cultural significance for Bhutan, analysts state the weaker nation has limited options to counter China's indefensible unilateral seizure of territory in the contested region. (Image source: Maxar Technologies)

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky will visit Washington on Tuesday to meet President Biden and address skeptical Republicans regarding continued military aid for Ukraine. With warnings that funding could dry up within weeks, Zelensky will make an urgent case for support in meetings with Biden, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and Senators from both parties. Discussions with Biden will focus on Ukraine's pressing defense needs and maintaining vital U.S. backing at this critical juncture, including potential joint weapons production. Zelensky's visit comes after Senate Republicans recently blocked $106 billion in emergency assistance over unrelated immigration disputes. The meetings aim to shore up aid despite growing conservative opposition and Biden's warnings that a Russian victory could spur further aggression in the region.

  Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called for Hamas operatives to lay down their arms, saying the Palestinian group's end was near, as the war in the Gaza Strip raged more than two months after it began. "The war is still ongoing, but it is the beginning of the end of Hamas. I say to the Hamas terrorists: It's over. Don't die for (Yahya) Sinwar. Surrender now," Netanyahu said in a statement, referring to the chief of Hamas in the Gaza Strip. But Hamas remained defiant, warning no hostages would leave Gaza alive without meeting the group's demands. Spokesman Abu Obeida said in a broadcast that neither Israel nor its backers can take prisoners without negotiations and concessions. The pronouncements come as over 17,100 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 50,000 wounded by Israeli assaults since October 7. Meanwhile, close to 1,200 Israelis have died as well over the course of the prolonged conflict. 

Israeli PM Netanyahu dismissed international appeals to stop the months-long Gaza war, arguing allies can't demand eliminating Hamas while also pressing to end military operations. Briefing his cabinet, Netanyahu said he told world leaders: "You cannot on the one hand support the elimination of Hamas and on other pressure us to end the war, which would prevent the elimination of Hamas." Fighting has raged since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct 7. While Israel vowed to destroy the militant group, its offensive has killed 17,700 in Gaza, mostly civilians. A 7-day truce saw hostage swaps before collapsing Dec 1. Qatar mediating talks warned "relentless" Israeli strikes were "narrowing window" for new truce. WHO proposed emergency aid passage given "catastrophic" health situation.

Hamas issued a stern warning to Israel on Sunday saying: "Neither the fascist enemy... nor its supporters can take their prisoners alive without an exchange and negotiation and meeting the resistance's demands". A spokesman for its armed wing, Abu Obeida, referred to freeing Palestinian detainees held by Israel while making the remarks in a televised address. Last week's collapsed Gaza truce saw 105 Hamas hostages freed in return for 240 prisoners. But Israel says 137 still remain captive in Gaza. Qatar trying to broker talks cautioned "narrowing window" due to relentless Israeli strikes. Vowing to continue the fight, Obeida stated: "We have no choice but to fight this barbaric occupier in every neighbourhood, street."

The teenage twins of imprisoned Iranian women's rights campaigner Narges Mohammadi accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to their mother. Serving a 10-year term in Tehran, Ms Mohammadi won the Nobel Peace Prize for her fight against the oppression of women in Iran. In a defiant speech smuggled from jail and read out, she stated: "The Iranian people, with perseverance, will overcome repression and authoritarianism. Have no doubt, this is certain." Jailed almost continuously since 2010 with multiple arrests, she is currently serving time for "spreading propaganda". Her husband lives exiled in Paris with their children who haven't seen her in years. The 51-year-old's absence at the Oslo ceremony stood testament to her long fight for justice from behind bars.

A French warship operating in the Red Sea shot down two drones launched from the Yemen coast, the French defense ministry said Sunday. It said the multipurpose frigate Languedoc intercepted and destroyed a first drone around 9:30 pm local time Saturday and a second one around 11:30 pm, about 110 km from Yemen's Al Hudaydah coast. On Saturday, Yemen's Houthi militants had threatened to target all ships heading to Israel regardless of nationality. The Iran-backed rebels have seized and attacked several Israeli-linked vessels in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab strait, a key global oil shipping channel. France said the drones were destroyed 68 miles off Yemen, averting a potential strike on the warship.

The UK's growing rich-poor divide risks becoming a "chasm", warned a think tank report, arguing the disadvantaged saw no improvement in 15 years. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) highlighted stagnant wages, housing issues, crime, and mental health crises, saying the gap widened amid the pandemic. It warned of slipping back to Victorian-era inequality with "systemic problems facing the bottom" getting entrenched. "For too many Britain is broken and the gap between the haves and have-nots is in danger of becoming a chasm," the report adds. Lockdowns worsened matters, it added, flagging surging youth mental illness and work benefits claimants. Ministers cited cost of living support but the report dubbed Britain "broken" over the dangers of an unbridgeable gulf between haves and have-nots.