US rejects request from UN Security Council for Gaza humanitarian ceasefire
In an attempt to isolate itself diplomatically while defending its partner, the United States on Friday vetoed a proposed UN Security Council demand for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza.
Britain abstained while thirteen other countries supported a short draft resolution proposed by the United Arab Emirates. The vote followed a rare effort on Wednesday by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to formally alert the 15-member council to the global threat posed by the two-month-long battle.
The vote followed a rare move on Wednesday by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to formally alert the 15-member council to the global threat posed by the two-month-long battle.
The US does not endorse calls for a rapid ceasefire, but we do want a permanent solution where both Israel and Palestine may live in security and peace. According to Robert Wood, the deputy US ambassador to the UN, “this would only sow the seeds for the next war because Hamas has no desire to see a durable peace, to see a two-state solution.
The Security Council called for fighting pauses last month to allow assistance access to Gaza, which Guterres on Friday referred to as a spiraling humanitarian nightmare after multiple attempts at action failed.
In order to secure the release of additional hostages and pressure Israel to better safeguard civilians during its assault on Gaza, which it launched in response to a Hamas strike that Israel claims killed 1,200 people, the US prefers to use its own diplomacy over measures taken by the Security Council. Gaza’s Health Ministry, the Israeli attack has claimed the lives of around 17,480 individuals.
