Israel vows again to destroy Hamas, rejecting calls for a cease-fire in Gaza at a major UN meeting

By EDITH M. LEDERER
Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Israel is vowing again to destroy Hamas, rejecting calls for a cease-fire at a high-level U.N. meeting from the U.N. chief, the Palestinians and many countries and declaring that its war against the extremist group in Gaza is also “the war of the free world.” Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen has also dismissed calls for “proportionality” in its response to Hamas’ surprise attacks on Israel on Oct. 7 that killed 1,400 people and has since led to more than 5,700 Palestinian deaths in Gaza, according to the health ministry there. Cohen told the U.N. Security Council Tuesday that the proportionate response to the Oct. 7 massacre is “a total destruction to the last one of the Hamas.”