Gaza cease-fire resolution backed by US fails in UN Security Council
A U.S.-sponsored resolution on a cease-fire in Gaza failed in the U.N. Security Council on Friday, with Russia and China vetoing the measure. A U.S.-sponsored resolution calling for an "immediate and sustained cease-fire" in the Israel-Hamas war has failed in the United Nations Security Council, with Russia and China vetoing the measure. The resolution called for the cease-cease as part of a deal to secure the release of hostages and warned of a potential famine in northern Gaza. Russia's ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, called the resolution "pointless" and included an effective "green light" for Israel to mount a military operation in Rafah. Negotiations for a cease-fired continued in Qatar, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken stating that peace talks could still lead to a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Nearly 32,000 people in Gaza have been killed in the war, with thousands more feared to die.
Published : a month ago by , The Columbus Dispatch in World
Gaza cease-fire resolution backed by US fails in UN Security Council
A U.S.-sponsored resolution calling for an "immediate and sustained cease-fire" in the Israel-Hamas war has failed in the United Nations Security Council, with Russia and China vetoing the measure.
The resolution called for the cease-fire as part of a deal to secure the release of hostages, stressed the "grave threat" posed by an Israeli offensive in Rafah and called on Israel to "eliminate all barriers and restrictions on humanitarian aid" amid a looming famine in northern Gaza, said Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. ambassador to the U.N.
"The vast majority of this council voted in favor of this resolution, but unfortunately Russia and China decided to exercise its veto," Thomas-Greenfield said after the vote.
Russia's ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, called the resolution "pointless," saying it was politicized, did not contain "demand" for a cease-fire and included an effective "green light" for Israel to mount a military operation in Rafah.
The resolution represented the toughest position the U.S. has taken on the war as a rift between the Biden administration and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deepens. The two counties are at odds over Israel's stated intention to invade Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza where over 1 million people are sheltering from the war.
Meanwhile, negotiations for a cease-fire continued Friday in Qatar among mediators as well as CIA Director William Burns and David Barnea, head of the Mossad spy agency. On Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in Cairo, Egypt, that he believes peace talks could still lead to a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.
"The gaps are narrowing, and we're continuing to push for an agreement in Doha. There’s still difficult work to get there. But I continue to believe it's possible," Blinken said, adding that he could not "put a timeline on it."
The main barrier to a deal has been Israel's vow to continue the war after a temporary pause in fighting, and Hamas' demand for a permanent cease-fire and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
The U.S. top diplomat is scheduled to meet with Netanyahu and the Israeli War Cabinet to address the gaps between Israeli leaders and the Biden administration, the need for more humanitarian aid to get into Gaza and Israel's plan to invade Rafah.
This week, the Integrated Food-Security Phase Classification (IPC), whose assessments are relied on by U.N. agencies, warned that people in northern Gaza, which has largely been cut off from aid, are on the brink of famine.
Nearly 32,000 people in Gaza have been killed in the war, with thousands more feared to be buried under rubble, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza, which does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths. The invasion of border communities in southern Israel by Hamas and other militants on Oct. 7 killed at least 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, and 253 people were taken hostage, according to Israeli officials.