With 14 votes in favor, none against and the abstention of the United States, the UN Security Council approved this Monday, March 25, a resolution that demands an “immediate” cessation of hostilities in the Gaza Strip, after more of five months of war. The vote took place just after a draft resolution proposed by Washington failed in the organization last Friday, March 22, due to the rejection of Russia and China, two countries that have the right to veto, in addition to the negative vote of Algeria, Government that promoted the new document that was finally endorsed. Following the result, Benjamin Netanyahu's Government announced that it was canceling the sending of a delegation from his country to Washington that was scheduled to discuss the situation in Gaza and specifically the ground incursion plan in Rafah.
A resolution demanding a ceasefire in Gaza was approved in the UN Security Council.
The document, promoted by Algeria, was endorsed with 14 votes in favor, none against and one abstention, that of the United States, among the 15 nations that make up the organization.
The text supported by the majority of the Council “demands an immediate ceasefire” for the month of Ramadan – which will end on April 9 – that “leads to a permanent and sustained ceasefire.”
In the last few hours, the spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lin Jian, had anticipated that his country would support the text.
The new vote arrived after last Friday, March 23, the Asian giant, together with Russia, two countries with the right to veto in the Council, blocked another draft with a similar request, presented by the United States. Algeria also voted against the previous document.
That resolution called for an “immediate” cessation of hostilities that would last approximately six weeks and allow the delivery of urgently needed humanitarian assistance.
However, Beijing, Moscow, and Algiers rejected it by pointing out an alleged gap in the text that would allow Israel to go ahead with its plan for a ground incursion on Rafah, a city in the south of the Palestinian enclave, where most of the Palestinians take refuge. internally displaced population.
Likewise, they cited the need for a prior agreement between the Israeli Army and Hamas, before a vote in the Security Council, and considered that the document conditioned the stopping of the attacks on the release of the hostages held by the Islamist group.
For her part, the United States ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, then accused Moscow and Beijing of vetoing the initiative just because it was designed by Washington.
Read alsoUS resolution at the UN for a truce in Gaza rejected, after veto by Russia and China
A few hours before the new vote this Monday, the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, had stated that there is a growing international consensus around telling Israel that a ceasefire is necessary and that an attack on Rafah would cause a humanitarian disaster.
International pressure increases on Benjamin Netanyahu's government to allow more humanitarian aid to access Gaza, at a time when there are outbreaks of famine that could spread throughout the enclave, as highlighted by the United Nations and the European Union. .
Israel cancels sending delegation to Washington after approval of resolution at the UN
Minutes before the vote, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had warned that he would not send a delegation from his government to the American capital, scheduled for this week, in order to address the situation in Gaza, if Washington did not veto the resolution. of the Security Council.
A fact that was confirmed by Netanyahu's office, just after the vote. In a statement, the Netanyahu Administration stated that the United States' failure to block the resolution is a “clear retreat” from its initial position of support for Israel, which would harm the course of the war against Hamas.
“In light of the change in the American position, Prime Minister Netanyahu decided that the delegation will not travel,” the official note stated.
A high-level Israeli delegation was expected to travel to the United States this week to discuss with Joe Biden's administration officials the plan for Israel's ground military incursion into the city of Rafah, in the south of the Palestinian enclave, where the Palestinians take refuge. most of the population is internally displaced, which is why the United States opposes and tries to persuade its ally in the Middle East to stop this operation.
Being a permanent member of the Security Council, the United States – along with China, Russia, the United Kingdom and France – has the right to veto resolutions and with a single negative vote, any initiative can be nullified, as Israel sought.
For his part, the leader of the Israeli opposition, Yair Lapid, assured that with these actions Netanyahu seeks to divert attention from the division that his coalition is experiencing, regarding a military recruitment bill.
“It is shocking irresponsibility on the part of a prime minister who has lost control,” Lapid wrote on platform X.
The United States maintains its intention to meet with the Israeli delegation
White House spokesman John Kirby assured that the United States Government still hopes to meet with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to discuss “important” issues about the ongoing war.
The official also noted that Washington's position has not changed despite its abstention in the UN vote.
“We were looking forward to having a discussion about the alternatives and options for a major ground offensive because we do not believe that a ground offensive in Rafah is the correct course of action,” Kirby said at a press conference.
Top Biden spokesperson John Kirby says the US decision to withhold his veto of a UN ceasefire resolution is actually what Israel wants 🤔 pic.twitter.com/knqxceweHm
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 25, 2024
Additionally, Kirby indicated that Washington has seen no indications of a ground incursion by Israeli troops into Rafah, on the southern tip of Gaza, in the coming days.
“We have not seen any indication that the Israelis are imminently preparing to carry out a ground operation in Rafah (…) It makes no sense at this time that this is going to happen in the coming days,” Kirby stressed.
With Reuters and AP
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