US vetoes draft resolution demanding Gaza ceasefire

The US has used its veto power in the UN Security Council (UNSC) and blocked a new draft Middle East resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. This follows from the broadcast of the event on the website of the organization.

For the document in turn voted 14 out of 15 members of the Security Council.

According to Washington, the adoption of the resolution "would send a dangerous signal to the Hamas group that they do not need to return to the negotiating table," US Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Robert Wood said.

The draft resolution was prepared by 10 non-permanent members of the Security Council and consists of nine paragraphs, the first of which contains "a demand for an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire respected by all parties." The document also demands the release of all hostages held in the enclave, the observance of international law by all parties, and the provision of humanitarian aid to the civilian population of Gaza.

Earlier, on November 18, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vasily Nebenzya said at a meeting of the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East that the U.S. and Britain are trying their best to prevent the adoption of a resolution on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. In his opinion, the vote in the Security Council will be "the moment of truth for the Anglo-Saxon tandem."

On October 25, 2023, the UN Security Council did not adopt the Russian draft Middle East resolution, which called for an immediate ceasefire in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict zone. The draft failed to garner the necessary nine votes out of 15. It was opposed by the US and the UK, with nine more abstentions.

Later that month, the UN General Assembly (GA) adopted an Arab resolution introduced by Jordan that also calls for an immediate ceasefire. 120 countries, including Russia, voted in favor of it, 14 opposed it, including the US, Austria, the Czech Republic and others, and another 45 abstained.

The situation in the Middle East escalated on the morning of October 7, 2023, when the Palestinian radical movement Hamas subjected the territory of Israel to a massive rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. On the same day, Israel began retaliatory strikes.