A draft resolution drafted by Russia in the UN Security Council failed, at dawn on Tuesday, to obtain the minimum required 9 votes in the 15-member council.
The resolution calls for a ceasefire for humanitarian reasons in the war waged by Israel on the Gaza Strip, and the text condemns violence against civilians and all terrorist acts without naming any party.
The draft resolution received 5 votes in favor and 4 against, while 6 members abstained from voting.
Russia, China, the United Arab Emirates, Gabon, and Mozambique voted in favor of the resolution, while the United States, Britain, France, and Japan voted against it, and Albania, Brazil, Ghana, Malta, Switzerland, and Ecuador abstained from voting.
The Russian Permanent Representative to the Security Council, Vasily Nebenzia, said: “We regret that the Council remains hostage to the selfishness of Western delegations. Our project on a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza was put to a vote, and it achieved its goal.”
“We are deeply concerned about the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza,” Nebenzia added.
For his part, the Palestinian representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Riyad Mansour, said that what is happening in Gaza is not a military operation, but rather an assault and massacre against innocent civilians, noting that Israel killed entire families in Gaza, and also killed more than a thousand Palestinian children during this aggression.
He added that the health system in Gaza had completely collapsed as a result of the Israeli raids and the siege imposed on the residents of the Strip.
Mansour stressed that it is never permissible to kill civilians, and international law must be adhered to, stressing the need to stop the aggression against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, allow the passage of humanitarian aid, and stop forced displacement.
He said that there should be no illusion that killing more Palestinians will make Israel safer, adding that “Israel has not shown mercy to anyone in Gaza.”
He stressed that discrimination and double standards undermine international law and that our conflict with Israel is a political conflict, not a religious one.
Mansour said that the Security Council must not justify killing and blame the victim, and it must stop that, stressing that all free people in the world stand with the Palestinian people in rejecting Israeli crimes.
Mansour addressed our Palestinian people, saying: “It seems to you that the world has abandoned you and your children, and this unjust occupation has singled you out and turned off the light on your cause. But I assure you that all the free people of the world, who are in the millions, and peoples with living consciences are with you, they hear you, see you, and support you.” And they fill the streets of the world’s capitals in rejection of the Israeli crimes against you, and in support of your freedom, dignity, and the justice of your cause. Know that justice and peace are inevitably coming, and that no matter how much this Israeli occupation kills, destroys, oppresses, oppresses, and is arrogant, it will end and the independence of the State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital will be achieved. We will not be destroyed, nor will we be broken. Rather, we will bandage together. Our wounds, our hopes will return, we will remain, and we will live, because we are the owners of the truth, and the owners of the truth do not die or disappear, but rather they are resurrected and remain.”
For his part, Jordan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Mahmoud Al-Hamoud, said, “What Israel is practicing is not considered a right to self-defense, and it is unfortunate what is being repeated by some countries that Israel has the right to defend itself in the Gaza Strip, which is… Occupied territory.”
Al-Hamoud recalled what was stated in “the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on the issue of the separation wall of 2004 in paragraph 139, which did not grant Israel the right to defend itself in the occupied Palestinian territory,” noting that “what applies here are the provisions of international humanitarian law related to military response.” On armed attacks in the occupied territories, the occupying force must respect the principles of distinguishing between military targets and civilians, not directing attacks against civilians, proportionality in response, and taking the necessary precautionary measures to protect civilians.
He stated, “By following developments in the situation, it is clear that Israel’s military actions in Gaza do not respect the minimum limits stipulated by international humanitarian law.”
Al-Hamoud added: “The Arab group reaffirms that a just and comprehensive peace in accordance with international legitimate resolutions and the Arab Safety Initiative is a strategic Arab choice that represents the only way to protect the entire region from the cycle of violence.”
He stressed that Israel will not obtain security and peace unless the Palestinian people obtain security and freedom in their independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital on the lines of June 4, 1967.
For his part, the Chinese delegate, in his speech, called for respect for international humanitarian law and the protection of civilians. He also called on Israel to stop collective punishment against the residents of Gaza, while the representative of the UAE confirmed that the residents of Gaza are facing a brutal war by the Israeli occupation army, noting that her country Approved the Russian draft resolution on ending the conflict in Gaza.
Russia proposed the draft text on Friday, which also called for the release of hostages, the delivery of humanitarian aid and the safe evacuation of civilians in need.
For the eleventh day in a row, the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip continues, leading to the death of more than 2,800 citizens (so far). 64% of the martyrs are women and children, in addition to more than 10,000 wounded, in addition to the destruction of public and private property and infrastructure. , wiping out entire residential blocks.
Source: Maan News Agency