New York [US], December 9 (ANI): The US on Friday (local time) vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution on Gaza calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. The resolution was put forward by the United Arab Emirates and backed by over 90 member states. 13 members of the UNSC voted in favour of the resolution, while the UK abstained from voting.

The US Deputy Representative at the UN, Robert Wood, stressed that the resolution is “divorced from reality” and “would not have moved the needle forward on the ground.” He said, “Unfortunately, nearly all of our recommendations were ignored. And the result of this rushed process was an imbalanced resolution that was divorced from reality and that would not move the needle forward on the ground in any concrete way. And so, we regretfully could not support it.”

Robert Wood said the US could not understand why the authors of the resolution did not include language condemning Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7. He said that he had earlier explained why an unconditional ceasefire would simply be “dangerous” and leave Hamas in place, able to attack again. “Perhaps most unrealistically, this resolution retains a call for an unconditional ceasefire. I explained in my remarks this morning why this is not only unrealistic but dangerous: it would simply leave Hamas in place, able to regroup and repeat what it did on October 7,” Wood said.

He said, “We still cannot comprehend why the resolution’s authors declined to include language condemning Hamas’ horrific terrorist attack on Israel on October 7. An attack that killed over 1,200 people. Women, children, the elderly, people from a range of nationalities, burned alive, gunned down, Subject to obscene sexual violence.” “We are very disappointed that for the victims of these heinous acts, the resolution’s authors offered neither their condolences nor condemnation of their murderers. It’s unfathomable. Nor is there condemnation of the sexual violence unleashed by Hamas on October 7,” he added.

Explaining the UK‘s abstention from the draft resolution, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the UK to the UN Barbara Woodward said her country could not vote in favour of a resolution that fails to condemn the atrocities committed by Hamas on Israeli civilians on October 7.

Barbara Woodward said, “Calling for a ceasefire ignores the fact that Hamas has committed acts of terror and is still holding civilians hostage.” She noted that Israel needs to be able to address the threat posed by Hamas and it needs to do so in a manner that abides by international humanitarian law. She reiterated the importance of working meaningfully towards a two-state solution.

Earlier, Robert Wood said that the US does not support calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza as it “would only plant the seeds for the next war.” In his remarks at the UN Security Council briefing on the situation in the Middle East, Robert Wood stated that it continues to pose a threat to Israel and added, “An undeniable part of that reality is that if Israel unilaterally laid down its weapons today, as some Member States have called for, Hamas would continue to hold hostages.”

He said, “And as of today, Hamas continues to pose a threat to Israel and remain in charge of Gaza. That is not a threat that any one of our governments would allow to continue to remain on our own borders. Not after the worst attack on our people in several decades.” “For that reason, while the United States strongly supports a durable peace in which both Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace and security, we do not support calls for an immediate ceasefire. This would only plant the seeds for the next war – because Hamas has no desire to see a durable peace or a two-state solution,” he added.

Wood called the UNSC‘s failure to condemn Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel, including its acts of sexual violence and other unthinkable evils, “a serious moral failure.” He emphasised that the UNSC‘s decision underscores the “fundamental disconnect between the discussions that we have been having in this Chamber and the realities on the ground.”

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated his condemnation of Hamas’ attacks on Israel on October 7. Guterres said that he is “appalled” by the reports of sexual violence. “There is no possible justification for deliberately killing some 1,200 people, including 33 children, injuring thousands more, and taking hundreds of hostages,” he said, adding “at the same time, the brutality perpetrated by Hamas can never justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”

Guterres said, “While indiscriminate rocket fire by Hamas into Israel, and the use of civilians as human shields, are in contravention of the laws of war, such conduct does not absolve Israel of its own violations.” He called on the international community to do “everything possible” to end their ordeal. Antonio Guterres said, “I urge the Council to spare no effort to push for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, for the protection of civilians, and for the urgent delivery of lifesaving aid.” (ANI)

US “responsible for bloodshed” of children in Gaza: Palestine President after US vetoes UN resolution on ceasefire

Ramallah [Palestine], December 9 (ANI): Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday accused the United States of being “responsible” for the bloodshed of children in Gaza after Washington vetoed a UN resolution calling for an ‘immediate ceasefire‘, Times of Israel reported.

“The president has described the American position as aggressive and immoral, a flagrant violation of all humanitarian principles and values, and holds the United States responsible for the bloodshed of Palestinian children, women and elderly people in the Gaza Strip,” a statement from President Abbas’s office read.

This comes after the US vetoed the resolution at the UN Security Council that had called for an ‘immediate ceasefire‘ in Gaza. The voting was called after UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres invoked Article 99 of the UN charter to call a Security Council meeting.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh also slammed the decision and said the veto was “a disgrace and another blank cheque given to the occupying state to massacre, destroy and displace”, Al Jazeera reported.

Palestine’s UN envoy Riyad Mansour told the UNSC that the result of the vote was “disastrous” adding that millions of Palestinian lives hang in balance. “If you are against the destruction and displacement of the Palestinian people you must stand against this war. And if you support it then you are enabling this destruction and displacement regardless of your intentions…Millions of Palestinian lives hang in the balance. Every single one of them is sacred, worth saving,” Al Jazeera quoted him as saying.

During the vote on Friday, 13 UNSC member countries were in favour of the draft resolution. However, the US exercised its veto power. On the other hand, the UK abstained, saying it could not vote on a resolution that did not condemn Hamas.

Notably, it was the sixth time the Security Council had tried to reach consensus, CNN reported. Giving a statement on Washington’s stand, US Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood told the Security Council that it vetoed the ceasefire resolution because there was no mention of the October 7 terror attacks.

Meanwhile, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, thanked the US for “standing firm with us” in a post on X following the vote, while referring to it as a “detached discussion about a distorted resolution directed at the wrong side and not even condemning Hamas”.

Hamas — the terror organization behind the horrific October 7 attacks — also condemned the veto and called the US veto an “immoral and inhumane position.” A member of Hamas’ political bureau, Izzat Al-Rishq, said in a statement: “America’s obstruction of the issuance of a ceasefire resolution is a direct participation with the [Israeli] occupation in killing our people.” Several aid groups have strongly criticised the US for vetoing the resolution.

Amnesty International’s secretary general called the veto a “callous disregard” for human suffering while Medecins Sans Frontieres – also known as Doctors Without Borders – said the US “stands alone in casting its vote against humanity.” Oxfam meanwhile said the veto “puts another nail in the coffin for US credibility on matters of human rights,” CNN reported. (ANI)

“Complicit in brutal massacre”: Russia slams US after it vetoes UN ceasefire resolution in Gaza

Moscow [Russia], December 9 (ANI): Russia criticized the United States after it vetoed a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, CNN reported.
Russia‘s UN Ambassador accused the US of authorizing a ground offensive in Gaza by Israel. In a statement to the council, Russia‘s diplomat accused Washington of being “complicit in Israel’s brutal massacre.”

“Our American colleagues have condemned thousands – if not tens of thousands – more civilians in Palestine and Israel, including women and children, to death, along with the UN workers who are trying to help them,” said the Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky.

The United States and Israel oppose a ceasefire, saying it would benefit Hamas. Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas in response to the militants’ deadly Oct. 7 cross-border rampage. The United States was the only country to vote against a resolution calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war.

“One can say many beautiful but empty words about democracy, human rights, peace, security, some rules and order, but today, we learned the true value of these words as two members of the UN Security Council preferred to remain complicit in Israel’s brutal massacre,” the diplomat also said, in an apparent allusion to the US and the UK, which abstained from voting.

Russia and 13 other countries voted in favour of the draft resolution on Gaza, which demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of hostages, and humanitarian access to the strip, according to CNN.

Russia has time and again vetoed UN Security Council draft resolutions calling for the end of its on-going attack on Ukraine. Friday’s vote followed mounting international pressure for an end to the fighting in Gaza and more aid for the enclave, where the UN has said the humanitarian support system is on the edge of collapse.

After the vote, the US said the resolution was “divorced from reality,” and “would simply leave Hamas in place, able to regroup and repeat” the attacks it committed against Israel on October 7. The United Arab Emirates, which tabled the resolution, criticised the council’s inability to demand a ceasefire, asking: “What is the message we are sending Palestinians if we cannot unite behind a call to halt the relentless bombardment of Gaza?”

China too expressed its “great disappointment and regret” that the US vetoed the draft, with its UN ambassador saying “any negative attitude” toward a ceasefire was “untenable” and justification against it “remains feeble.” “It needs to be pointed out that condoning the continuation of fighting while claiming to care about the lives and safety of the people in Gaza and the humanitarian needs there is self-contradictory,” CNN quoted Ambassador Zhang Jun as saying. “All this shows once again what double standard is,” he added.

France said it did “not see any contradiction in the fight against terrorism and the protection of civilians,” and added that with a lack of unity in the council, the crisis in Gaza is “getting worse and… runs the risk of extending,” CNN reported. (ANI)