No veto by the USA

UN calls for “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza for the first time

US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield (2nd from left) abstained from the vote.(Bild: AFP/APA/ANGELA WEISS)

For the first time, the UN Security Council in New York passed a resolution on Monday calling for an "immediate ceasefire" in Gaza in Israel's war against the terrorist organization Hamas. The USA abstained.

Unlike in previous votes, this time the USA did not use its opportunity as a permanent member of the Security Council to exercise a veto in the most powerful body of the United Nations. The 14 other members voted in favor of the resolution.

More pressure on parties to the conflict
As Israel's most important ally, the USA made it possible for the resolution, which is binding under international law, to be adopted. In addition to a ceasefire, the resolution also calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held by the Islamist Hamas. Almost six months after the start of the Gaza war, international pressure on the parties to the conflict, Israel and Hamas, continues to rise.

In recent months, Israel has destroyed numerous buildings during air strikes in the Gaza Strip.(Bild: APA/AFP)

However, it is questionable whether or to what extent the resolution will have any influence on decisions made by the Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or Hamas regarding the further course of the war.

Netanyahu canceled trip to the USA
Immediately before the vote, Netanyahu threatened to cancel the planned trip of two of his envoys to Washington at short notice if the USA did not use its veto power to prevent the resolution. A short time later, it became clear that Netanyahu's confidants would indeed not be flying to the USA. They were supposed to meet with high-ranking government representatives there. They would have wanted to present them with alternatives to a planned Israeli ground offensive in Rafah in the Gaza Strip. Humanitarian aid should also have been a topic.

In recent weeks and months, the government of US President Joe Biden had become increasingly impatient with the Israeli war cabinet under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The abstention illustrates the rift that has developed between the allies, analyzed the British "Guardian".

First resolution failed due to China and Russia
However, in view of the rising number of civilian casualties and the threat of famine in parts of the sealed-off coastal strip, the USA has recently increased the pressure on Israel. Biden himself has also become increasingly critical, for example with regard to Israel's planned ground offensive in the city of Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian internally displaced persons have sought refuge from the fighting there. On Friday, Washington made a U-turn and for the first time called for "an immediate and permanent ceasefire" in the Gaza war in a resolution. However, Russia and China vetoed the resolution. The draft resolution did not go far enough for Moscow and Beijing - in their eyes, the text was too pro-Israeli and not sufficiently binding in places.

The Security Council also held a minute's silence for the victims of terrorism in Moscow on Monday.(Bild: APA/AFP/ANGELA WEISS)

"Permanent ceasefire" as a goal
The concise resolution text that has now been adopted focuses on the demand for "an immediate ceasefire for Ramadan (the Islamic month of fasting) that is respected by all sides". This should lead to a "lasting and sustainable ceasefire", according to the text. The draft resolution also calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and emphasizes the "great concern in view of the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip". Aid supplies for the civilian population must be expanded.