As the UN General Assembly prepared to vote on a resolution calling for a “humanitarian ceasefire” in Gaza, the Israeli ambassador there condemned the assembly's “hypocrisy” and called out those “responsible” for the lack of a ceasefire.
“Ask for Yahya Sinouar.” This Tuesday, December 12, the UN General Assembly, made up of 193 member states, overwhelmingly called for “an immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in Gaza. The ten voices that voted against this resolution included the United States and Israel, which wanted to add a condemnation of the “heinous Hamas terrorist attacks” on October 7.
A few minutes before the vote, Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan denounced the “hypocrisy” of the United Nations.
“The resolution not only fails to condemn Hamas for its crimes against humanity, but also simply does not mention it,” he complained.
Hamas must “lay down its weapons”
According to him, Hamas members who “abruptly violated the ceasefire” on October 7 and “refused to release female hostages” during the humanitarian ceasefire are “responsible” for the lack of a ceasefire. “The so-called humanitarian ceasefire in this resolution has nothing to do with humanity.”
As he continued his speech, Gilad Erdan took out a sign from under his desk. “Why don’t you ask those responsible for a ceasefire? “It's time to blame those who should be blamed,” he chanted, waving his piece of paper bearing a number and the words “Call him to a ceasefire” and “Ask for Yahya Sinouar” ( the head of Hamas' political bureau, editor's note).
According to the diplomat, the number given is that of the “Hamas office in Gaza”. He added, mentioning Yahya Sinouar, who has become Israel's top target: “Tell him that if Hamas lays down its arms, surrenders and returns all the kidnapped hostages, there will be a real ceasefire that will last forever. “
For his part, the Palestinian UN Ambassador welcomed the “strong message” sent by the UN General Assembly with its resolution, which marks a “historic day”.
“It is our collective duty to continue on this path until we see the end of this aggression against our people, the end of this war against our people,” Riyad Mansour told reporters.