UN Security Council approves Gaza ceasefire resolutionExBulletin

JERUSALEM The United Nations Security Council has voted 14-0 in favor of a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza for the rest of Ramadan. The United States abstained, clearing the way for the measure's passage.

The US decision to abstain drew a swift response from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who canceled a visit by an Israeli delegation that had been scheduled to travel to Washington, DC, for talks on Israel's planned military operation in Rafah. in southern Gaza.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu made it clear last night that if the US withdraws from its principled position, he will not send the Israeli delegation to the US. In light of the change in American attitude, Prime Minister Netanyahu decided that the delegation would not go. “, says a statement from the Prime Minister's office.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Netanyahu's statement was “a little surprising and unfortunate.”

The US abstention was seen as a sign of a growing rift between the two close allies. Washington is urging Israel not to launch an offensive in Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians have taken refuge. Israel says it must move in to destroy the remaining Hamas battalions there.

The high-level delegation, led by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, was to meet with Biden administration officials to hear US concerns about the Rafah operation and discuss an alternative strategy .

Despite the cancellation, a planned visit by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant went ahead. Gallant was in Washington on Monday to meet with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.

What does this resolution say?

The cease-fire resolution calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages taken by Hamas during the October 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people. Israel's military offensive in Gaza in response to the attack has killed more than 32,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.

Ramadan is set to end in just over two weeks, on April 9, so if any truce emerges from the vote, it may only be short-lived.

Monday's vote followed several failed attempts by the Security Council to broker a ceasefire resolution, including a recent one three days ago.

The US had supported calls for a ceasefire only if they were directly linked to the release of some 130 hostages still being held captive under a deal negotiated by diplomats from four countries.

“This resolution further explicitly recognizes the arduous and ongoing negotiations being conducted by the governments of Egypt, Israel, Qatar, and the United States to achieve such a concession in the context of a cease-fire, which would also create space to increase more rescue and humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians and to build something more sustainable,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

But because the final text of the resolution did not include “key language that we see as essential, specifically a condemnation of Hamas, we cannot support it,” Blinken added.

US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield is now urging Security Council members to pressure Hamas to accept a deal being negotiated in Doha.

“We are getting closer to an agreement on an immediate ceasefire with the release of all hostages, but we are not there yet,” Thomas-Greenfield said after the vote.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby was adamant the vote did not reflect a change in US policy.

“We've been clear and we've been consistent in our support for a ceasefire as part of a hostage agreement,” Kirby said in a call after the vote with reporters. He reiterated that because the final text did not include a condemnation of Hamas for the October 7 attacks, the US abstained rather than vote in favor of the resolution.

“It seems like the prime minister's office is choosing to create a perception of daylight here when they don't need to,” Kirby said.

He added: “Of course we still have Israel's back.”

Representatives of Hamas and Israel are still in Qatar for indirect negotiations on a ceasefire. but remain far from each other in some detail.

Hamas said it welcomed the Security Council's call for an immediate ceasefire, but called on the international body to pressure Israel to abide by the ceasefire and stop fighting.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said, “This resolution must be implemented. Failure to do so would be inexcusable.”

Jaclyn Diaz reported from Jerusalem. Michele Kelemen reported from Washington, DC