US officials vetoed a new UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution calling for an “immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire” in Gaza during an emergency session of the council on 20 November.
This is the fourth consecutive veto Washington has issued in support of Israel's ethnic cleansing campaign of Palestinians in Gaza. All other 14 UNSC members voted in favor of Wednesday's resolution.
“The world should not grow accustomed to the death of Palestinians, to seeing Palestinian children starving,” Palestine's Deputy Ambassador to the UN, Majed Bamya, said during the session, adding that the world is watching an “attempt to annihilate a nation” while the tools “designed to respond to these situations are not being used.”
“Maybe for some, we have the wrong nationality, the wrong faith, the wrong skin color. But we are humans, and we should be treated as such,” Bamya added, in strong repudiation of the US veto.
“Once again, the US demonstrates that it is a direct partner in the aggression against our people, that it is criminal, kills children and women, and destroys civilian life in Gaza, and that it is directly responsible for the genocidal war and ethnic cleansing, just like the occupation (Israel),” Palestinian resistance movement Hamas said following Wednesday's vote.
The Palestinian presidency also issued a statement criticizing Washington, saying their decision “emboldens Israel to continue its crimes against innocent civilians in Palestine and Lebanon” and accusing US officials of disregarding international law and UN resolutions, including the July ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) calling for an “end to the Israeli occupation, withdrawal from Gaza, and a cessation of hostilities.”
Russian Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya also took the US to task, chastising officials for assuming “full responsibility for the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent citizens, the deprivation of refugees, the suffering of hostages and illegally detained Palestinians.”
“The cold-blooded and cynical obstruction by the United States of a simple demand of the Security Council – to save human lives – is an unconscionable and inhumane act," the Russian diplomat emphasized.
US officials say they blocked the new UNSC resolution because it was “not linked” to an unconditional release of Israelis taken captive by the Palestinian resistance on 7 October 2023.
“We made clear throughout negotiations we could not support an unconditional ceasefire that failed to release the hostages,” Robert Wood, the alternate US representative to the UN, said following the vote. “Simply put, this resolution would have sent a dangerous message to Hamas: there's no need to come back to the negotiating table.”
However, France’s UN representative, Nicolas de Riviere, noted the resolution “included a firm demand for the release of hostages, including French nationals.”
Algeria's UN ambassador, Amar Bendjama, also said the resolution considered “significant concessions during negotiations, yet one member chose to block any action – any action – from this council.”
“Today’s message is clear to the Israeli occupying power first: ‘You may continue your genocide, you may continue your collective punishment of the Palestinian people with complete impunity. In this chamber, you enjoy immunity’,” Bendjama lamented.
Washington's latest veto at the UNSC follows reports by Israeli media saying the White House is lobbying Democratic senators to vote against legislation this week that would halt $20 billion worth of arms sales to Israel.
About 44,000 have been killed and over 100,000 injured by the US-backed war in Gaza over the past 13 months, more than two-thirds of whom are women and children. Thousands more remain trapped under the rubble, as Israeli attacks are non-stop and often target first responders.
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