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A general view shows a United Nations Security Council meeting on Gaza at the UN headquarters in New York City on December 8, 2023.
CNN –
Diplomats said intensive negotiations were underway at the United Nations ahead of an expected vote on Tuesday on a resolution calling for an end to hostilities to allow urgently needed aid to the Gaza Strip.
The United Nations Security Council will meet on Tuesday to discuss, among other things, a resolution drafted by the United Arab Emirates that calls for a suspension of hostilities in Gaza to allow the delivery of urgently needed humanitarian aid, according to Lana, the United Arab Emirates ambassador Emirates at the United Nations said Nusseibeh.
The vote was originally scheduled for Monday but was pushed back a day to allow more time for negotiations. The focus of the talks is to develop a language that could achieve a “yes” vote from the United States or at least an abstention, which would allow the measure to be passed.
The draft resolution was initially said to have included a call for a “cessation of hostilities” to allow urgently needed aid to enter the Gaza Strip. Diplomats hoped that changing the wording to “suspension of hostilities” might win American support.
The US has rejected previous measures in the UN Security Council and voted against a call for a ceasefire in the larger UN General Assembly.
That gives Tuesday's vote significance; If the US allows the resolution to be passed, it would be an important signal to Israel – including from its most important ally – about the growing international outrage over the humanitarian situation in Gaza. The vote is expected sometime later Tuesday.
During the Security Council meeting, a senior US diplomat said that while the October 7 attacks by Hamas were atrocities that should be condemned, civilians and journalists must continue to be protected and vital humanitarian assistance is needed to reach civilians .
U.N. Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood gave no details on how the United States will vote on the upcoming resolution calling for a cessation of hostilities in Gaza to allow the delivery of urgently needed humanitarian aid.
Wood also expressed concern about the alarming increase in Israeli settler violence in the West Bank, saying the United States condemns the settler violence and calls on the Israeli government to investigate the violence and hold the settlers accountable.
Earlier this month, the United States vetoed a resolution in the 15-member UN Security Council that included the word “ceasefire” in its text. Wood told the Security Council at the time that this was because the October 7 Hamas attacks were not mentioned in the draft.
As one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, a US veto means the resolution will not be adopted.
According to Nusseibeh, who helped draft the text and leads the 22-member Arab group as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, the intensive efforts to adopt the latest resolution come against the backdrop of the “critical” need to end hostilities and Allowing aid as the humanitarian crisis in the enclave reaches “catastrophic” proportions.
“Every day, innocent people in Gaza struggle desperately with lack of food, water, medicine and fuel. UN Security Council members have seen firsthand the consequences of this humanitarian disaster, and the need for more assistance could not be clearer,” Nusseibeh said.
“This Council resolution responds to this need through the opening of border crossings, the movement of aid by land, sea and air, and a United Nations-led mechanism that would streamline inspections, monitoring and authorizations. It underlines the importance of ending hostilities to enable the delivery of humanitarian assistance, and we will continue to pursue this goal vigorously.”
Nusseibeh also said: “These results are important to save lives and our approach from the outset has been focused on ensuring acceptance.” This has been the basis of our engagement in negotiations with Council members, including the US, with whom we “We have discussed this text closely and in good faith with the Arab countries concerned.”
Last week, the United Nations General Assembly voted to call for an immediate ceasefire in the war-torn Gaza Strip, a rebuke to the United States that has repeatedly blocked calls for a ceasefire in the Security Council. While the General Assembly vote is politically significant and carries moral weight, unlike a Security Council resolution, it is non-binding.
This story has been updated with additional reporting.
CNN's Michael Williams contributed to this report.