US vetoes UN resolution calling for Gaza ceasefire

Authored by semafor.com and submitted by semafornews

The U.S. vetoed a UN Security Council resolution Friday calling for a ceasefire to the fighting in Gaza.

The U.S. and Israel have opposed calls for a ceasefire, saying it would strengthen Hamas.

The vote was delayed for several hours over worries the U.S. would veto it. Diplomats from several Arab nations met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to try to convince the U.S. to abstain from voting.

As a permanent member of the council, the U.S. has veto power, and had signaled it planned to block the resolution. The U.K. abstained from the vote, while the 13 other members of the council voted for it.

programaticallycat5e on December 8th, 2023 at 22:22 UTC »

UK Response:

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

“Calling for a ceasefire ignores the fact that Hamas has committed acts of terror and is still holding civilians hostage,” she said, noting 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 “which delivers statehood for the Palestinians, security for Israel and peace for people on both sides.”

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US Response:

The US engaged in good faith on the text, said Deputy Permanent Representative Robert A. Wood, that would increase opportunities for hostage release and more aid to reach Gaza.

“Unfortunately, nearly all of our recommendations were ignored” leading to an “imbalanced resolution that was divorced from reality that would not move the needle forward on the ground in any concrete way. And so, we regretfully could not support it."

He said the US still could not understand why the resolution’s authors declined to include language condemning “Hamas’s horrific terrorist attack” on Israel, of 7 October.

It killed people from a range of nationalities, subjecting many to “obscene sexual violence.”

He said he had explained earlier in the day why an unconditional ceasefire would simply be “dangerous” and leave Hamas in place, able to attack again.

It was “a recipe for disaster for Israel, for Palestinians and for the entire region”.

Any ceasefire leaving Hamas in control would also deny Palestinians the chance to build something better for themselves, he added.

Sauce: https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/12/1144562

Edit: formatting

the_fungible_man on December 8th, 2023 at 21:21 UTC »

So the UK abstained, and France voted in favor. The US alone gets the international heat for "protecting Israel", or "choosing war", or whatever the narrative is.

semafornews on December 8th, 2023 at 20:59 UTC »

From Semafor's J.D. Capelouto:

The U.S. vetoed a UN Security Council resolution Friday calling for a ceasefire to the fighting in Gaza.

The U.S. and Israel have opposed calls for a ceasefire, saying it would strengthen Hamas.

The vote was delayed for several hours over worries the U.S. would veto it. Diplomats from several Arab nations met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to try to convince the U.S. to abstain from voting.

As a permanent member of the council, the U.S. has veto power, and had signaled it planned to block the resolution. The U.K. abstained from the vote, while the 13 other members of the council voted for it.

Read the full story here.