On the afternoon of the 10th (local time), the United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting. It adopted a resolution supporting the three-stage Gaza ceasefire plan led by the United States.
According to Reuters, all of the 15 member states of the Security Council voted in favor of the resolution except for Russia, who abstained.
To pass a resolution through the Security Council, more than nine of the 15 member states must approve it, and none of the five permanent member states, including the United States, China, Russia, the United Kingdom, and France, should exercise their veto power.
Despite initial concerns that Russia could exercise its veto power, Russia clarified its intention to abstain instead of vetoing, as the ceasefire procedure is supported by Arab countries despite the plan’s lack of clarity.
The resolution led by the United States contains a call for Israel and the Palestinian armed faction Hamas to “fully comply with the unconditional three-stage ceasefire proposal.”
The 3-phase ceasefire proposal proposed by U.S. President Joe Biden on the 31st of last month includes:
- Phase 1: Immediate, full, and complete ceasefire with the release of hostages and withdrawal of Israeli forces from populated areas of Gaza
- Phase 2: Full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the release of all remaining hostages in Gaza
- Phase 3: A long-term reconstruction plan for Gaza.
The resolution demanded that the ceasefire continue as long as negotiations continue, even if the Phase 1 ceasefire negotiations take more than six weeks.
Unlike other countries calling for a ceasefire during the eight-month Gaza war, Biden continued to support weapons for Israel and exercised his veto power at the UN Security Council. However, as the number of civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip rapidly increased and pro-Palestinian protests intensified in the United States, he put forward a ceasefire proposal.
After the adoption of the resolution, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. Ambassador to the UN, said in a speech that Hamas should now see clearly that the international community is united, assuming that Hamas accepts the deal.
Hamas stated that it “welcomes the content included in the Security Council’s resolution.”
The U.S. government believes that Israel is positive about the ceasefire proposal with the key being Hamas’ acceptance. However, it remains to be seen whether Israel will fully comply with the ceasefire proposal. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “Biden presented only parts of the proposal.” In particular, the possibility of other right-wing party figures joining the war cabinet is increasing as Benny Gantz, a political opponent of Netanyahu from the Blue and White party, resigned.
Most Commented