At the meeting, she described to the Brazilian a humanitarian situation of “extreme seriousness” and called for urgent action from the UN body. Brazil will hold the presidency of the Council until next week. But it is his resolution that served as the basis for a new attempt to break the impasse.
This week, in a scene described by diplomats as a “macabre circus,” the council failed to reach an agreement on how to respond to the crisis in Gaza. A text proposed by the US was rejected by Russia and China, which accused Washington of not even calling for a ceasefire.
A few moments later it was Moscow that proposed a new text. But without any reference to Israel’s right to selfdefense, the proposal was rejected by the US and Britain.
Two other projects one from Brazil had already been vetoed last week, deepening the crisis.
Faced with the impasse, the solution found by Arab countries was to submit the matter to the General Assembly, a forum in which no country has veto power. Therefore, a majority vote of the 192 countries is sufficient for the adoption of a resolution.
Negotiation and next steps
No one at the United Nations or among diplomats believes that Israel will stop its attacks or release the hostages thanks to the text being voted on in New York today and tomorrow. However, one of the goals is to put pressure on the powers to reach an agreement.