Live updates: World leaders flock to U.N. General Assembly

Secretary General Antonio Guterres decried a “world of inequality” in his opening in his opening remarks at the U.N. General Assembly, denouncing governments that feel entitled to a “get out of jail free” card.

Calling for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas, Guterres also called said nothing can justify the “collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”

He said civilians were paying the price for the war between Russia and Ukraine, and added that a “humanitarian catastrophe” was unfolding in Sudan.

“The level of impunity in the world is politically indefensible and morally intolerable,” Guterres said.

Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep said animals have greater rights than women and girls in Afghanistan as she called on the international community to intervene. 

The Taliban — which seized control of the country after the United States withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021 — announced a new set of draconian laws in August that ban women from speaking in public or showing their faces outside their homes. 

Most women and girls have also been barred from attending high school and university.

“Today in Kabul a female cat has more freedoms than a woman. A cat may go sit on her front stoop and feel the sun on her face. She may chase a squirrel into the park,” Streep said at an event on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly. “A squirrel has more rights than a girl in Afghanistan today, because the public parks have been closed to women and girls.”

There’s a packed schedule in today’s session as the assembly opens in New York.

First up, Secretary-General of the U.N., Antonio Guterres, will give his opening State of the World speech, before Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is scheduled to be the first world leader to take to the stage today.

President Biden will then address the assembly for the final time as commander in chief, and we will also hear from Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Iran’s Masoud Pezeshkian.

The leaders of Switzerland, Colombia, Qatar, Sierra Leone and Angola are also scheduled for this morning.

See the full list of speakers here

Ukrainian President Vlodymyr Zelenskyy says war with Russia “closer to the end” as he prepares to present a “victory plan” on a trip to the U.S.

Zelenskyy is in New York for the U.N. General Assembly today and has called on allies to strengthen his nation’s army. Zelenskyy has repeatedly appealed to the U.S. and the United Kingdom to drop restrictions that prohibit Ukraine from using weapons they provide to strike targets deep inside Russia.

“We are closer to the end of the war. We just have to be very strong, very strong,” Zelenskyy told ABC News.

“The plan of victory is strengthening of Ukraine,” he continued. “That’s why we’re asking our friends, our allies, to strengthen us. It’s very important.”

The United Nations has adopted a new pact after nine months of negotiations that is aimed at revitalizing the organization by reasserting the primacy of international law and tackling the issues of the 21st century.

That includes new commitments to combatting challenges ranging from climate change and artificial intelligence, to inequality and conflict.

It was unclear if the pact would be adopted as Russia proposed an amendment that would have watered down the agreement and argued that “nobody” was happy with it. But some 143 countries, including all 54 African nations, voted not to take on Russia’s amendment, which garnered support from just six nations.

The 193-member world body eventually approved the document on Sunday, but Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said that Moscow would “distance itself from the consensus on this document.”

President Joe Biden will address the United Nations General Assembly for the final time as commander in chief Tuesday morning amid the spiraling conflict in the Middle East, Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and growing global concerns about China’s influence.

His speech comes against the backdrop of the presidential race on its final leg before Election Day, knowing that his successor — Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump — will face the same issues in the White House and may deal with them very differently.

They are also Biden’s first remarks before the General Assembly since Hamas’ attack on Israel in October and the conflict that has ensued in Gaza, killing thousands of civilians. He’ll speak to the leaders of other nations as hope for a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas has dimmed.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters last week that Biden will “reaffirm America’s leadership on the world stage” in New York and will “rally global action to tackle the world’s most pressing challenges.”

Read the full story here.

Japan’s foreign minister demanded a clearer explanation of the circumstances behind the stabbing death of a Japanese boy in China in a meeting in New York yesterday with her Chinese counterpart.

Yoko Kamikawa asked that Beijing strongly punish the alleged perpetrator, who was apprehended at the scene, and take stronger steps to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals in China after the attack, which took place Wednesday as the 10-year-old was on his way to a Japanese school in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. Beijing should also crack down on anti-Japanese comments online, she told Wang Yi, China’s top diplomat.

Wang said Japan should view the situation “calmly and rationally” and not politicize or escalate what he called an “isolated incident,” the motive for which is unclear. He said China would continue to ensure the safety of all foreign nationals in China, according to a readout of the meeting from the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

The meeting also came after Beijing announced last week that China and Japan had ended their dispute over the release of treated radioactive wastewater from the ruined Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The dispute had included a Chinese ban on the importation of Japanese seafood, though it is unclear when those imports might resume.

World leaders have gathered today for the United Nations General Assembly in New York amid ongoing and escalating conflict in the Middle East, while wars rage in Ukraine and Sudan.

U.N. General Secretary Antonio Guterres has previewed his opening “State of the World” speech, saying “our world is heading off the rails — and we need tough decisions to get back on track.”

President Joe Biden will address the United Nations General Assembly for the final time as commander in chief this morning, but for the first time since Hamas’ attack on Israel in October and the conflict that has ensued in Gaza, killing thousands of civilians.

Brazilian president Lula da Silva and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan are also set to speak today.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are both scheduled to speak on Thursday. 

See the full schedule of speakers here.