Israel-Gaza war: US vetoes UN Security Council resolution calling for ‘pause’ for humanitarian aid
- US ambassador tells Security Council to let ‘diplomacy play out’, with US President Biden ‘on the ground’ in Tel Aviv
- Israeli prime minister’s office announces Israel will permit aid to enter Gaza through Egypt, saying move followed Biden’s request
The United States on Wednesday blocked a United Nations Security Council resolution that called for “pauses” in the conflict between Israel and Hamas militants to permit the flow of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
Washington used its veto power against the Brazil-drafted resolution, which condemned all violence against civilians and demanded immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.
“The United States is disappointed that this resolution made no mention of Israel’s rights of self-defence,” Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, told the council.
It was the second time in three days the council considered a resolution. On Monday, the US – along with Britain, France and Japan – voted against a call for a “humanitarian ceasefire” brought by Russia, noting that the resolution did not include any reference to Hamas.
China, Gabon, Mozambique and the United Arab Emirates joined Russia, but six other members abstained. Adoption of measures on the 15-member council requires at least nine votes in favour.
A surprise Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 left more than 1,400 dead, most of them civilians. The group is also reportedly holding at least 199 hostages.
Since the attack and abductions, Israeli air strikes have killed nearly 3,000 people in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.
Israel has cut off the flow of food, medicine, water and electricity into Gaza and told more than 1 million residents in the north of Gaza to flee south as it prepares for a ground offensive.
On Tuesday, Palestinian officials said that at least 500 people were killed in a blast at Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City. Both Israel and Hamas have denied responsibility for the explosion.
The actions we take must be informed by the facts on the ground and support direct diplomacy efforts
Global divisions over the conflict were on full display at the council meeting on Wednesday in New York.
Despite the US opposition, Brazil’s proposal received 12 votes. China, Japan, Switzerland, Ecuador, Mozambique, Gabon, Albania, Brazil, Malta, the United Arab Emirates, Ghana and France approved the resolution. Russia and Britain abstained.
Zhang Jun, China’s UN ambassador, accused the US of misleading the council by not expressing any opposition during negotiations on a resolution that had been underway since Friday.
Biden says Gaza hospital blast ‘done by other team’ not Israel, condemns Hamas
“Our reaction is that of shock and disappointment,” he said, calling the veto “unbelievable”.
According to sources, Brazil also believed that Washington’s silence during the negotiations meant it would not veto the resolution.
Brazilian Ambassador Sergio Franca Danese stressed that “hundreds of thousands of civilians in Gaza cannot wait any longer”, warning that once again “silence and inaction prevailed to no one’s long-term interest”.
The UAE’s UN ambassador, Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, told the council that while Hamas was responsible for “sparking the latest fire”, the “kindling was already there, fuelled by decades of violent dehumanisation, dispossession and despair”.
Japan said it had voted in favour of Brazil’s proposal because of the desperate situation in Gaza, adding that it sought a delay to support Washington’s diplomatic efforts to ease the crisis.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with leaders of Group of Seven nations after the vote on the phone to “discuss their support for Israel”.
Thomas-Greenfield urged the Security Council members to let “diplomacy play out” while the US was “on the ground doing the hard work of diplomacy”.
“Yes, resolutions are important. And yes, this council must speak out. But the actions we take must be informed by the facts on the ground and support direct diplomacy efforts. That can save lives. The council needs to get this right,” she said.
Israel says it will not prevent aid entering Gaza from Egypt
Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan condemned the council for being “fixated” on humanitarian aid instead of “freeing Gaza from Hamas”.
“It is really unfathomable you cannot even unite on that basic thing”, Erdan said, adding that “some here … choose not to designate Hamas as a terror organisation for political reasons”.
The contentious vote followed US President Joe Biden’s arrival in Israel and came as Biden promised firm support for Israel during a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv.
“You’re not alone,” Biden said, offering more aid and saying that US intelligence indicated the hospital blast was the result of an errant rocket fired by Palestinian fighters.
Later on Wednesday, Netanyahu’s office announced that Israel would not prevent aid from entering Gaza through Egypt, adding that the decision followed a request by Biden.
