El secretario general de Naciones Unidas, António Guterres, celebró el sábado la extensión por 45 días del alto el fuego alcanzado a mediados de abril entre Israel y Líbano, y exigió a ambas partes el fin de toda agresión y el cumplimiento del Derecho Internacional.

“El jefe de la ONU acoge con satisfacción el anuncio de la prórroga de 45 días del cese de hostilidades tras las conversaciones facilitadas por Estados Unidos entre Israel y Líbano”, señaló un comunicado oficial difundido por el portavoz adjunto de Guterres, Farhan Haq.

El representante máximo de la organización reiteró el apoyo de Naciones Unidas a “todos los esfuerzos para poner fin a las hostilidades y aliviar el sufrimiento de las comunidades a ambos lados de la Línea Azul”, nombre que recibe frontera provisional entre ambos países.

“Naciones Unidas está comprometida a apoyar todos los esfuerzos diplomáticos para promover la plena aplicación de la resolución 1701 (2006) del Consejo de Seguridad”, orientada a poner fin a la guerra entre Israel y Hezbollah.

El comunicado subrayó la importancia de que “todos los actores (…) respeten plenamente el cese de las hostilidades, cesen cualquier ataque posterior y cumplan en todo momento con sus obligaciones en virtud del Derecho Internacional, incluido el Derecho Internacional Humanitario”.

El viernes, el portavoz del Departamento de Estado de Estados Unidos, Tommy Pigott, anunció en redes sociales que “el cese de hostilidades (entre Líbano e Israel) se prorrogará 45 días para permitir que se sigan realizando avances” entre las partes.

La diplomacia estadounidense convocó para el 2 y 3 de junio una nueva ronda de negociaciones, la cuarta entre ambos países desde la reactivación del conflicto, y adelantó para el 29 de mayo una “ronda de negociaciones sobre seguridad en el Pentágono con delegaciones militares” de las dos partes.

Un portavoz del Departamento de Estado de Estados Unidos afirmó a Europa Press que “el ambiente de las conversaciones ha sido muy positivo, incluso superando las expectativas”.

La delegación israelí estuvo compuesta por el embajador en Estados Unidos, Yechiel Leiter, y el viceasesor de Seguridad Nacional, Yossi Draznin. Por parte de Líbano participaron la embajadora en Washington, Nada Hamadeh, y el enviado especial Simon Karam. La representación estadounidense incluyó al consejero del Departamento de Estado, Michael Needham, al embajador en Israel, Mike Huckabee, y al embajador en el Líbano, Michel Issa.

Pese a la tregua vigente desde el 17 de abril, los ataques israelíes sobre territorio libanés continuaron. Hezbollah, que no participa en las negociaciones, siguió lanzando proyectiles hacia Israel y atacando fuerzas israelíes en el sur del Líbano, donde el ejército israelí mantiene una extensa zona de amortiguamiento.

El presidente libanés, Joseph Aoun, advirtió el martes que los bombardeos israelíes “erosionan los esfuerzos para consolidar el cese de hostilidades”. Por su parte, el primer ministro libanés, Nawaf Salam, instó este viernes a dejar de lado los actos temerarios en favor de intereses extranjeros, en una crítica dirigida a Hezbollah.

“Suficiente con las aventuras temerarias al servicio de proyectos e intereses extranjeros, la última de las cuales es una guerra que no elegimos sino que nos fue impuesta y que ha llevado a que Israel ocupe 68 pueblos, aldeas y lugares”, sostuvo Salam.

El liderazgo de Hezbollah rechazó públicamente las resoluciones del Gobierno libanés y calificó la participación en las negociaciones como un error estratégico. Desde Beirut, el grupo reiteró su oposición a cualquier contacto directo con Israel y exigió la retirada inmediata de la delegación oficial libanesa de las conversaciones, desestimando la autoridad del Ejecutivo para limitar sus actividades armadas en el territorio.

(Con información de Europa Press)

Nebraska’s top auditor says fraud complaints are surging as waste, fraud, and abuse dominate the national conversation, telling Fox News Digital that his own crackdown has uncovered alleged misuse of taxpayer resources inside state government.

«It’s just extraordinary the explosion of phone calls and allegations and emails and so forth that are pouring into my office,» Nebraska State Auditor Mike Foley said as the fraud crackdown have become a national news story and the Trump administration, led by Vice President JD Vance, unleashed a task force to root out fraud. 

«And as the media focuses on this more and more, it just makes the phone ring all the more, which is fine. We’re happy to receive those calls and try to filter through them and find out which ones are the most legitimate ones for us to pursue. But it’s clearly on the rise.»

Foley, speaking with Fox News Digital from the State Financial Officers Foundation conference in Clearwater, Florida, is sounding the alarm specifically on what he says is an issue with taxpayer money being wasted or possibly defrauded by state workers, which he has made efforts to crack down on. 

«Many of our state vehicles are now equipped with a GPS tracker,» Foley explained. «We can see precisely where these state vehicles are really going during work hours and they’re going to liquor stores. They’re going into health appointments that the employee might have. They’re on personal errands all across the state, and it’s racking up a lot of expense for the taxpayers in a very improper way.»

‘MISSISSIPPI MUSK’: STATE AUDITOR’S MOGE REPORT FINDS $400M IN GOVERNMENT WASTE

Foley’s office reviewed GPS data from 45 state fleet vehicles and found employees allegedly using them for «trips to retail outlets, restaurants, medical facilities, residences of relatives, commuting home without permission and other private errands,» the Nebraska Examiner reported last year.

Foley put out a press release last year documenting how he uncovered what he described as a «disturbing uptick» in alleged financial improprieties across local governments statewide, detailing eight recent investigations involving suspected misuse of public money, questionable reimbursements and possible fraud. 

«I can cite so many examples of contractors that are over billing or double-billing the state, all kinds of state employee infractions of using state vehicles and state assets improperly, having contractors bill us for hours which we know they did not work, having state employees billed us for time served when we know that they were at a different place of employment, public school districts that are milking public school funds for all kinds of extravagances and so forth, but at the end of the day, the tone has to be set at the top.»

At the top, Foley’s efforts on waste, fraud, and abuse have led him to a situation that he describes as «uncomfortable,» which has put him at odds with Nebraska’s Republican Gov. Jim Pillen.

FINAL WALZ FRAUD REPORT RIPS ‘CULTURE OF TOLERANCE’ AS MINNESOTA TAXPAYERS FACE BILLIONS IN ALLEGED LOSSES

Foley has been involved in a highly publicized debate with Pillen, arguing that the governor improperly awarded a no-bid state contract worth roughly $2 million to a consultant with ties to the governor. Nebraska law generally requires public bidding for contracts over $50,000 and says the administration wrongly claimed there was an «emergency» to bypass that process. 

«There was no emergency and later now they’re claiming that she brought in hundreds of millions of dollars in grant awards,» Foley said. «The truth is those grant award applications were filed by other people, other contractors before she was even on the job. So this is a very, very serious abuse and it sets the tone in the wrong way. For other people in the state government who can say the governor can do that, I can do it too. And that’s wrong.»

Pillen’s administration has denied wrongdoing, maintaining the contract was justified because of the need to quickly pursue economic development opportunities and federal funding.

«The contract was done the right way and is bringing hundreds of millions of dollars of value to Nebraska, which otherwise would have been wasted in California,» Pillen spokesperson Laura Strimple told Fox News Digital. «Auditor Foley disagrees and he is entitled to his opinion.»

Foley has referred the matter to law enforcement for further review, saying his office’s role is limited to conducting audits and highlighting potential violations. 

«I’m not the most popular person in state government,» Foley jokingly told Fox News Digital, but said «we must» track expenditures in order to safeguard taxpayer funds.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

The Nebraska state capitol building in Lincoln, Nebraska (Getty Images)

«Nebraska regrettably is a high-tax state and people know that, and they’re fed up with these high taxes, and they know that money is not being spent properly in so many instances, and they are relying on me and my office to catch this kind of thing, and we’re doing a good job,» Foley said. 

«There needs to be consequences when we find these kinds of abuses, and there are. Many people are losing their jobs because they’ve abused the trust of having access to a credit card or other assets of the government, or there could be even further legal complications and infractions and jail sentences even. We’ve put a number of people behind bars because of abuse and stealing of public funds.»

Buckingham Palace said King Charles III was «shocked and saddened» to find out a British soldier died after a fall at a horse show the royal was attending this week.

The soldier died during a display of the King’s Troop, Royal Horse Artillery at the Royal Windsor Horse Show on Friday evening.

The unidentified soldier fell after leaving the arena following the display, and despite being treated, their injuries were serious, and they died at the scene, the Thames Valley Police said in a release.

The police said the horse show would continue as planned on Saturday but without another display of the King’s Troop, Royal Horse Artillery.

PRINCESS ANNE ADMITS HOSPITAL STAFF HAD TO FILL IN ‘THE BLANKS’ AFTER SUFFERING CONCUSSION, MEMORY LOSS

Charles attended the horse show, which is on the grounds of Windsor Castle, along with his younger brother Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, and his wife Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, their daughter Lady Louise, who was working at the show, and the king’s sister Princess Anne.

Following the soldier’s death, the king met with members of the King’s Troop at the horse show after returning on Saturday.

QUEEN CAMILLA ONCE BELIEVED KATE MIDDLETON WAS ‘TOO COMMON’ TO MARRY A FUTURE KING, AUTHOR CLAIMS

King Charles III greets young riders during the Royal Windsor Horse Show on Saturday. (Aaron Chown/PA Images)

«While His Majesty and other members of the royal family were present at the arena at the time the incident took place, they were not made aware of the severity of the situation until later,» a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said, according to the London Times.

The spokesperson added, «The King was greatly shocked and saddened to have learned subsequently of the troop member’s death and will be in touch with the family to share his personal condolences. The thoughts and most heartfelt sympathies of the whole royal family are with the victim’s loved ones and military colleagues at this time of grief.»

Buckingham Palace did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s after-hours request for comment.

King Charles III greets well-wishers during the Royal Windsor Horse Show in Windsor, Berkshire, on Saturday. (Aaron Chown/PA Images)

The annual horse show is the only time the private grounds of Windsor Castle are open to the public.

On Saturday morning, the police appealed to the public for any information about the «unexplained but non-suspicious death» of the soldier.

Participants take part in the Coaching Marathon as they walk up the Long Walk during the Royal Windsor Horse Show on Friday. (Andrew Matthews/PA Images)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

«At this stage, we have not found any suspicious circumstances,» police said in a post on Facebook. «We are working with the British Army, Ministry of Defence, the Defence Accident Investigation Branch and Royal Windsor Horse Show organisers HPower to gather as much information as possible to understand how this happened.»