The UN Security Council demanded an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza conflict and the immediate release of all hostages on Monday, as the United States abstained from the vote and did not veto the measure.
Other than the United States, the remaining 14 members of the UN Security Council voted for the ceasefire resolution, which was proposed by the 10 elected members of the body, including Algeria, Ecuador, Guyana, Japan, Malta, Mozambique, South Korea, Sierra Leone, Switzerland, and Slovenia.
Moments after the vote passing the ceasefire resolution, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres wrote that “this resolution must be implemented” on social media platform X. “Failure would be unforgivable,” he added.
“The Palestinian people has [sic] suffered greatly. This bloodbath has continued for far too long. It is our obligation to put an end to this bloodbath, before it is too late,” Algeria’s U.N. Ambassador Amar Bendjama told the Security Council after the vote was held.
The White House has been averse to a ceasefire in the nearly six-month-old war in the Gaza Strip, following Hamas’s terrorist attack in Israel that killed 1,200 civilians and captured hundreds of hostages. The United States has also exercised its Security Council veto power to block resolutions unfavorable to Israel in its conflict with Hamas.
But amid growing global and domestic pressure, the United States on Monday abstained from the vote to allow the Security Council to demand an immediate ceasefire during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which ends in two weeks.
US Reacts
Before the vote on Monday, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield was critical of what she described as a cynical approach by China and Russia, two permanent members of the Security Council, and said the resolution doesn’t do enough to classify Hamas as a terrorist organization. Russia and China have vetoed previous, U.S.-drafted versions of the resolution, including last week.
“Just last week, Russia and China vetoed a resolution that condemned this horrific attack, a resolution the vast majority of this council supported. They have shown time and time again that they are not actually interested in advancing a durable peace through diplomatic efforts,” she said.
“Nor for all their rhetoric are they interested in making any meaningful contributions to humanitarian efforts. Instead, they are using this devastating conflict as a political cudgel to try to divide this council at a time when we need to come together. It is deeply deeply cynical. And we should all see through it.”
Regarding Hamas, she said that “certain key edits were ignored, including our requests to add a condemnation of Hamas. And we did not agree with everything in the resolution. For that reason, we were unfortunately not able to vote yes.”
The U.N. ambassador added that a ceasefire and the release of hostages will allow “much more humanitarian aid to get into Gaza at a time when famine is looming large and provide an opportunity to work toward a sustainable cessation of hostilities, and toward a future where Hamas can no longer threaten Israel, and never repeat October 7.”
The United States has vetoed three draft council resolutions on the war in Gaza. It has also previously abstained twice, allowing the council to adopt resolutions that aimed to boost aid to Gaza and called for extended pauses in fighting.
After it was learned that the United States wouldn’t issue the veto, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu canceled an Israeli delegation to the White House, Israeli media reported. Mr. Nethanyahu has urged the United States to veto the ceasefire resolution and threatened to cancel the trip.
“The U.S. retreated from its consistent position in the Security Council linking a ceasefire with the release of the hostages,” the prime minister’s office said in a statement.
Resolutions passed by the U.N. Security Council are legally binding, according to its website, meaning that the order has to be carried out. It’s not clear how Israel will react to the vote, and no public statements have been given by its government or Mr. Nethanyahu’s office as of Monday.
Fighting Continues
On Monday, Israel’s military carried out new airstrikes in Gaza and targeted two hospitals. Israeli forces were besieging Al-Amal and Nasser hospitals in the southern city of Khan Younis, Reuters reported, a week after they entered Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, the main hospital in the Gaza Strip.
Israel says hospitals in Gaza are used by Hamas as bases. Hamas and medical staff deny this.
The Israeli military said over the weekend it had detained 500 people affiliated with Hamas and the allied Islamic Jihad and located weapons in the Al Shifa area. Israel’s military also said 20 terrorists had been “eliminated” in fighting and airstrikes around Al Amal Hospital over the previous 24 hours.
Reuters contributed to this report.
From The Epoch Times