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NEW YORK CITY: The US permanent representative to the UN, Mike Waltz, on Thursday urged Iran to abandon what he described as the “false hope of revolution,” and its regional ambitions.
It came as the UN vowed to intensify its efforts to achieve a two-state solution and end the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land.
“The international community must urge the Iranian regime to give up on its false hope of revolution, and forego its ambitions on its neighbors,” Waltz told the UN Security Council during an open debate on the Middle East.
He called on Tehran to “engage in direct, good-faith dialogue with the United States for the benefit of the Iranian people and the security of the region.”
Waltz reiterated Washington’s support for the reimposition of UN “snap-back” sanctions on Iran, and framed President Donald Trump’s recent “20-Point Plan for Peace” between Israelis and Palestinians as part of a broader push to end regional conflict and reshape the Middle East.
“With President Trump’s plan, we are closer than ever to realizing the Middle East that generations dreamt of — a region of peace, prosperity, harmony, opportunity, innovation, achievement,” he said.
His remarks came as UN officials described a fragile calm in Gaza following the Oct. 10 ceasefire and hostage-release agreement brokered under Trump’s plan.
The UN’s deputy special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, Ramiz Alakbarov, told the council the UN would continue to advocate for a two-state solution.
“The United Nations will continue to support all efforts to end the occupation and resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in line with international law and UN resolutions,” he said.
“This means realizing a two-state solution; Israel and Palestine, of which Gaza is an integral part, living side by side in peace and security within secure and recognized borders on the basis of pre-1967 lines, with Jerusalem as the capital of both states.”
Alakbarov praised the US, Qatar, Egypt and Turkiye for their mediation help in what he described as the “remarkable diplomatic effort” that brought an end to the bloodiest phase of the conflict in decades.
But he warned that the situation remains “extremely fragile” and a return to violence “must be avoided at all costs.”
He said aid deliveries to Gaza had increased by 46 percent during the first week of the ceasefire but described the humanitarian needs in the territory as “staggering,” citing the widespread displacement of the population and lack of access to basic services. The UN, he added, has launched a 60-day emergency response plan to accelerate relief efforts and restore essential services.
Waltz said the peace would only hold if Hamas disarms and abides by the terms of the ceasefire agreement.
“The job is not done,” he told the council. “Hamas must immediately return the bodies of the 13 remaining hostages, including the bodies of American citizens Itay Chen and Omer Neutra, as promised under the agreement. … Their families deserve dignity.”
He added that Hamas “must likewise follow through on its commitment to disarm. Simply put: Hamas is finished in Gaza and does not have a future there.” Failure to comply, he warned, would have “severe consequences.”
Waltz condemned what he described as “extremely disturbing and bloody executions” carried out in Gaza by Hamas in recent days.
“This is further evidence that Hamas is unfit to rule the Gaza Strip and cannot be trusted with the safety of the people in Gaza for a moment longer,” he said.
He also criticized the recent opinion from the International Court of Justice on Israel’s obligations in Gaza, calling it “a nakedly political — but fortunately non-binding — ‘advisory opinion,’ unfairly bashing Israel and giving UNRWA (the UN agency that aids Palestinian refugees) a free pass for its deep entanglement with Hamas’ terrorism.”
Alakbarov welcomed the finding of the court, which he said underscored the need for humanitarian access to Gaza. He announced that Egypt, the Palestinian Authority and the UN plan to co-host a Cairo Reconstruction Conference “to advance recovery and reconstruction for Gaza.”
He added: “We are at a momentous but precarious juncture. Political will, financial resources and a genuine commitment to creating a better future for all are needed.”

LONDON: Israeli forces in Gaza control more territory than stipulated in the ceasefire agreement with Hamas, a BBC investigation has found.
Israel was meant to withdraw to a set boundary to the north, south and east of Gaza known as the Yellow Line.
But footage and satellite images show that Israeli forces have planted markers to denote the line hundreds of meters deeper than expected, BBC Verify reported.
Defense Minister Israel Katz has said anyone violating the line “will be met with fire.” Israeli forces have already opened fire with deadly consequence on people crossing it twice since its establishment.
The line has changed several times since the ceasefire agreement was announced. On Oct. 14, Israel published an updated version in an online map for residents to adhere to, but Israeli footage geolocated by BBC Verify found several markers as much as 0.5 km further inside Gaza than previously suggested.
The markers, near Al-Atatra neighborhood in northern Gaza, had been moved with bulldozers by the Israeli military along the coastal Al-Rashid Road.
In the south near Khan Younis, another 10 markers were identified on Oct. 19 as far as 290 meters beyond where the Yellow Line is meant to be.
Gazans have said the line is not clearly marked, putting them in danger of Israeli fire if they stray too close to it.
Abdel Qader Ayman Bakr, who lives in Gaza City near the boundary in Shejaiya district, told the BBC: “Each day, we can see Israeli military vehicles and soldiers at a relatively close distance, yet we have no way of knowing whether we are in what is considered a safe zone or an active danger zone.
“We are constantly exposed to danger, especially since we are forced to remain here because this is where our home once stood.”
In an incident on Oct. 17, 11 people were killed by Israeli fire, including women and children, when their vehicle strayed over the line near the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City.
BBC Verify said it had seen footage of rescue workers, a burnt-out vehicle and the body of a child covered with a white sheet, and geolocated the video to around 125 meters over the Yellow Line.
Dr. Lawrence Hill-Cawthorne, professor of public international law at the University of Bristol, told the BBC: “Israel’s obligations under the law of armed conflict do not cease even for those breaching the Yellow Line.”
She added: “It can only target enemy fighters or those directly participating in hostilities, and in so doing it must not cause excessive civilian harm.”