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By Iftikhar Ali
UNITED NATIONS, Jun 05 (APP): The United States, wielding its veto power, quashed a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding an immediate and unconditional cease-fire in Gaza, the release of all hostages, and the resumption of full-scale humanitarian aid deliveries to the war-shattered enclave.
The text, co-sponsored by Pakistan, Algeria, Denmark, Greece, Guyana, Panama, South Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, and Somalia – collectively known as the “E-10” – received 14 votes in favour, with the US casting the lone vote against.
As one of the council’s five permanent members, the US holds veto power – a negative vote that automatically blocks any resolution from going forward.
“We believe this text reflects the consensus shared by all Council members that the war in Gaza has to come to an immediate halt, all hostages must be immediately and unconditionally released, and civilians in Gaza must not starve and must have full and unimpeded access to aid,” said a joint statement from the 10 nonpermanent members, which was read by Slovenia’s ambassador to the U.N., Samuel Zbogar, at the Council meeting ahead of the vote.
“It is a sad day – another low in the history of this august body, that entrusted with primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, exclaimed Pakistan’s UN Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said, pointing out that the US veto sends the signal that the lives of over 2 million starved and besieged Palestinians are dispensable.
While the Council deliberated, Gaza was decimated, the Pakistani envoy stated, adding, “To kill innocent civilians for seeking bread and water is not only a war crime—it is a tragic indictment of a system that criminalizes survival and militarizes humanitarian aid, in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.”
Ambassador Asim added, “Aid dropped from the sky or delivered under armed escort is not a solution, it is a spectacle.”
Had the draft resolution been adopted, it would have demanded “an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in Gaza” to be respected by all parties.
The text reaffirmed the Council’s earlier call for the “immediate, dignified and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups.”
The draft also expressed grave concern over the “catastrophic humanitarian situation” in Gaza, following more than the months of almost total Israeli aid blockade, including the risk of famine, highlighted by recent international food security assessments.
It reaffirmed the obligation of all parties to comply with international law, including international humanitarian and human rights law.
In addition to a ceasefire, the draft resolution demanded the “immediate and unconditional lifting of all restrictions” on the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza, calling for safe and unhindered access for UN and humanitarian partners across the enclave.
It also urged the restoration of essential services, in accordance with humanitarian principles and prior Security Council resolutions.
The text voiced support for ongoing mediation efforts led by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States to revive the phased ceasefire framework outlined in resolution 2735 (2024), which envisions a permanent cessation of hostilities, the release of all hostages, the exchange of Palestinian prisoners, the return of all remains, full Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza, and the start of a long-term reconstruction plan.
Speaking ahead of the vote, acting US Permanent Representative Dorothy Shea described the draft resolution as “unacceptable”.
“US opposition to this resolution should come as no surprise – it is unacceptable for what it does say, it is unacceptable for what it does not say, and it is unacceptable for the manner in which it has been advanced,” she said.
“The United States has been clear,” she continued, “we would not support any measure that fails to condemn Hamas and does not call for Hamas to disarm and leave Gaza.”
She added that Hamas has rejected numerous ceasefire proposals, including one over the weekend that would have provided a pathway to end the conflict and release the remaining hostages.
Diplomats at the U.N. have watched in fury and frustration as the humanitarian situation in Gaza has deteriorated to levels where children are starving. Since March, Israel had enforced a ban on all aid delivery into the territory, facing global backlash and accusations that its army was committing war crimes by weaponizing food and essential aid.
Israel justified blocking aid deliveries by claiming that Hamas hijacks them and has denied international assessments that Palestinians are on the brink of famine.
Council members have also been frustrated at the United States for blocking the body from acting in a deadly war that has killed more than 56,000 Palestinians, many of them women and children, according to Gazan officials. UNICEF said this week that 50,000 children had been killed or injured in Gaza since the war began.
The Council members say, publicly and privately, that the United States is standing in the way of the will of the majority of the member states at the U.N.
“Today, the elected members of the Council have stood with clarity, with conviction, with courage — they are the proud bearer of moral legitimacy,” said Algeria’s ambassador to the U.N., Amar Bendjama, the only Arab representative in the Council. He said the resolution was not “the voice of the few, but the collective will of the entire world.”
Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., Danny Danon, told reporters ahead of the Council meeting on Wednesday that the resolution “doesn’t advance humanitarian relief — it undermines it.” He added, “It ignores a working system in favour of political agendas.”
A new U.S.-Israeli backed effort to control and distribute limited aid in Gaza through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation was suspended on Wednesday, after a week of chaos and deadly violence.
Gazan officials said that on June 1, Israeli soldiers shot and killed more than 20 Palestinians standing in line to receive aid.
On Tuesday, at least 27 people were killed as Palestinians walked toward a new food distribution site in southern Gaza, Gazan health officials said. Israel claimed its forces had fired near “a few” people who had strayed from the route to the site and did not respond to warning shots.
The U.N. has called for an independent investigation into the killings and has denounced this aid-distribution effort, saying that it violates international laws protecting the unhindered flow of aid and access for aid agencies in conflict zones.
“The world is watching, day after day, horrifying scenes of Palestinians being shot, wounded or killed in Gaza while simply trying to eat,” the U.N.’s top humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, said in a statement on Wednesday.
“We must be allowed to do our jobs. We have the teams, the plan, the supplies and the experience.”
The failure of the resolution comes as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens, with UN agencies warning of the total collapse of health services, growing displacement, and a rising death toll around the new privatized US-Israel-led aid distribution system, which bypasses established agencies.