At UN, Biden stresses Israel maintains right to wage war

US President Joe Biden gave his address to the UN General Assembly, where he again reiterated Washington's stance that Israel has a right to defend itself against Hamas.

“Any country, any country, would have the right responsibility to ensure that such an attack could never happen again,” Biden said, referring to the 7 October attacks led by Hamas.

In the same speech, the US president said he was “determined to prevent a wider war that engulfs the entire region”, as Israel launched a major escalation in Lebanon, with hundreds of air strikes that have so far killed more than 500 people.