The committee has been struggling to reach an agreement for days. The US initially wanted to veto the measure, but ended up abstaining.
After days of fighting, the UN Security Council issued a resolution calling for increased humanitarian aid to around two million people in need in the Gaza Strip. The UN's most powerful body adopted a watered-down compromise text in New York on Friday. The US refrained from vetoing and abstained.
From the beginning of the week, it appeared that Washington would use its veto power to protect the interests of its ally Israel. However, massive concessions by negotiators prevented the decision from falling apart at the last second. A total of 13 of the 15 countries voted in favor of the text, with Russia abstaining along with the USA.
Humanitarian goods at all border crossings
The decision, which is binding under international law, calls on Israel to “immediately allow safe and unimpeded humanitarian access” to the Gaza Strip. Conditions must also be created for a sustainable cessation of violence.
On the contentious issue of how aid delivery would be monitored, council members agreed to appoint a responsible UN coordinator. This should also ensure that deliveries are accelerated in collaboration with all stakeholders. The Council further demands that humanitarian goods flow into the Gaza Strip through all available border crossings.
Tickets excluded due to USA
However, other passages were eliminated due to US pressure: A paragraph condemning “all violations of international humanitarian law, including all arbitrary attacks on civilians and civilian objects” is no longer in the resolution. The immediate suspension of violence previously called for to allow aid delivery is also missing.
Several council members were dissatisfied with the text due to significant weakening. It's not yet clear how much influence the resolution will actually have. Despite its binding nature, the consequences for Israel if it is violated will likely be manageable. The UAE's chief negotiator, Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh, called the text “not perfect” and emphasized the need for a ceasefire to help those in need and prevent famine.
As a result of Israel's war over the past ten weeks, the humanitarian situation for more than two million people in the Gaza Strip is dramatic. A recent UN study concludes that 577,000 people in the isolated coastal strip fall into the most serious category of hunger. In contrast, there are currently 129,000 people in the rest of the world who are at a similar risk. Almost everyone in the Gaza Strip suffers from hunger or displacement. Israel isolated and attacked the Gaza Strip after the horrific terrorist attack by Islamic Hamas on October 7th.
“Disgraceful behavior”
The US government, in particular, struggled internally for a long time when negotiating the resolution presented by the UAE. According to reports, top diplomats were already prepared to abstain earlier in the week. But President Joe Biden initially made the decision to veto it, despite a conversation on Tuesday with UN Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield. But then US Secretary of State Antony Blinken received new concessions in direct talks with his counterparts in the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, according to diplomats.
Russian Ambassador to the UN Vasily Nebenzya accused the US of “shameful, cynical and irresponsible behavior” in its negotiations outside the Council. The Chinese representative expressed his disappointment with what Beijing considered to be too weak of a text – among other things due to the lack of a ceasefire demand. American Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, however, said that the adopted resolution uses the full power of the UN Security Council to help the people of the Gaza Strip.
Non-binding resolution
In recent weeks, two similar draft resolutions failed due to US resistance. Washington has always supported Israel and said that progress through a resolution could compromise ongoing diplomatic efforts on the ground. Until now, the UN Security Council only approved a resolution on the conflict that is binding under international law and with a humanitarian focus a few weeks ago. The UN General Assembly, on the other hand, has twice called for an end to violence through resolutions. However, the resolutions of this body are not binding, but rather considered symbolic.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres also took unusually strong steps to urge the Security Council to uphold a humanitarian ceasefire. In a recent letter to the Council, he referred to Article 99 of the United Nations Charter. This allows the Secretary-General to draw the attention of the Security Council to “any matter which, in his opinion, may jeopardize the guarantee of international peace and security” – and, according to the UN, it has not been used for decades. (APA/dpa)