UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations Security Council on Monday demanded an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, marking the first time such a resolution has been passed. Notably, the United States, a traditional ally of Israel, abstained from the vote.
The resolution, which calls for an “immediate ceasefire” during the ongoing holy month of Ramadan, received unanimous support from all other 14 Security Council members. It was put forward by the 10 elected council members and backed by Russia, China, and the 22-nation Arab Group at the United Nations.
The vote came after Russia and China vetoed an earlier US-sponsored resolution on Friday, which aimed to support “an immediate and sustained ceasefire” in Gaza. Following the veto, the Security Council’s Arab Group urged unity and urgency among its members to address the escalating violence and humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Since the conflict’s outbreak in October, more than 32,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, in Gaza have been killed in the ongoing relentless Israeli bombardment. Meanwhile, the United Nations reported that famine is imminent in parts of the besieged Palestinian territory. The dire situation has prompted international calls for an end to the ongoing Israeli violence and increased humanitarian aid to the region.
US Expresses Concern Over UN Security Council Resolution
In a statement issued before the vote, US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield expressed concerns about the resolution’s impact on ongoing diplomatic negotiations, warning against actions that could jeopardize the negotiation process.
However, Russia and China criticized the US-sponsored resolution, labeling it as ambiguous and not reflective of global calls for an immediate ceasefire. Both countries emphasized the need for a clear and direct demand to halt hostilities in Gaza.
Before the vote, Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said Moscow supports an immediate ceasefire, but he criticized the diluted language, which he called philosophical wording that does not belong in a UN resolution.
He accused US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield of “deliberately misleading the international community” about calling for a ceasefire.
“This was some kind of an empty rhetorical exercise,” Nebenzia said. “The American product is exceedingly politicized, the sole purpose of which is to help to play to the voters, to throw them a bone in the form of some kind of a mention of a ceasefire in the besieged Gaza Strip … and to ensure the impunity of Israel, whose crimes in the draft are not even assessed.”
China’s UN ambassador, Zhang Jun, said the US proposal set preconditions and fell far short of expectations of council members and the broader international community.
“If the US was serious about a ceasefire, it wouldn’t have vetoed time and again multiple council resolutions,” he said. “It wouldn’t have taken such a detour and played a game of words while being ambiguous and evasive on critical issues.”
Friday’s vote in the 15-member council was 11 members in favor and three against, including Algeria. There was one abstention, from Guyana.
The Security Council just approved a long-awaited resolution on Gaza, demanding an immediate ceasefire, and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.
This resolution must be implemented. Failure would be unforgivable.
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) March 25, 2024
