United Nations:
After more than five months of war, the United Nations Security Council called for an immediate ceasefire for the first time on Monday after Israel’s ally the United States vetoed an earlier draft and abstained from the vote.
All 14 other member states in the usually staid Security Council drew unusual applause by voting in favor of the resolution, which “calls for an immediate ceasefire” in response to the ongoing Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
The resolution calls for a ceasefire to achieve a “durable and sustainable ceasefire” and demands that Hamas and other militants release the hostages they took on October 7.
Russia objected at the last minute to lifting the term “permanent” ceasefire and called for a vote, which failed to pass.
The successful resolution was drafted by Algeria, a current member of the Arab Group on the Security Council, together with several countries including Slovenia and Switzerland.
The United States has vetoed previous ceasefire proposals but has shown growing frustration with Israel, including its stated plans to expand military operations into the crowded southern city of Rafah.
The United States’ approach to its Middle East allies changed on Friday, with the United States proposing a resolution recognizing the “necessity” of an “immediate and sustained ceasefire.”
But the text was blocked by Russia and China, which joined Arab countries in criticizing it for not explicitly requiring Israel to halt its operations in Gaza.
As the civilian death toll in Gaza continues to mount, the United States has repeatedly blocked ceasefire resolutions as it tries to balance providing military aid to Israel with expressing frustration with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu.
Unlike Friday’s text, the call for a ceasefire in the new resolution is not directly related to ongoing negotiations, led by Qatar and backed by the United States and Egypt, to halt fighting in exchange for the release of hostages by Hamas.
Israel criticized previous Security Council resolutions for not specifically condemning Hamas.
An attack on Israel by Palestinian militant groups on October 7 killed about 1,160 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli data.
The militants also held 250 hostages, of whom Israel believes that about 130 remain in Gaza, and 33 of them are suspected to be dead.
Israel’s military campaign to eliminate Hamas has killed more than 32,000 people, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in Hamas-controlled areas.
The Security Council has been divided over the issue of Israel’s war with Hamas since the Oct. 7 attacks, approving only two of eight resolutions, both of which dealt primarily with humanitarian aid.
The resolutions appeared to have little impact on the ground, with U.N. personnel saying Israel continued to block aid convoys as experts warned of looming famine.
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