US vetoes UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate Gaza ceasefire

By EDITH M. LEDERER

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United States on Wednesday vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza because it was not linked to the release of hostages.

The resolution before the U.N.’s most powerful body also did not condemn Hamas’ deadly attack in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which ignited the war, or say the group must disarm and withdraw from Gaza — two other U.S. demands. Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.

The 14 other members of the 15-nation council voted in favor of the resolution, which described the humanitarian situation in Gaza as “catastrophic” and called on Israel to lift all restrictions on the delivery of aid to the 2.1 million Palestinians in the territory.

The U.S. vetoed the last resolution on Gaza in November, under the Biden administration, also because the ceasefire demand was not directly linked to the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. Similarly, the current resolution demands those taken by Hamas and other groups be released, but it does not make it a condition for a truce.

President Donald Trump’s administration has tried to ramp up its efforts to broker peace in Gaza after 20 months of war. However, Hamas has sought amendments to a U.S. proposal that special envoy Steve Witkoff has called “totally unacceptable.”

The vote followed a decision by an Israeli and U.S.-backed foundation to pause food delivery at its three distribution sites in the Gaza Strip after health officials said dozens of Palestinians were killed in a series of shootings near the sites this week. Israel and the United States say they supported the establishment of the new aid system to prevent Hamas from stealing aid previously distributed by the U.N.

The United Nations has rejected the new system, saying it doesn’t address Gaza’s mounting hunger crisis, allows Israel to use aid as a weapon and doesn’t comply with the humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence. The U.N. says its distribution system throughout Gaza worked very well during the March ceasefire and is carefully monitored.

The resolution demanded the restoration of all essential humanitarian services in line with humanitarian principles, international humanitarian law and U.N. Security Council resolutions.

Israel’s U.N. Mission said Ambassador Danny Danon, who will speak after the vote, will say the resolution undermines humanitarian relief efforts and ignores Hamas, which is still endangering civilians in Gaza. He also will say the resolution disregards the ceasefire negotiations that are already underway, the mission said.

Gaza’s roughly 2 million people are almost completely reliant on international aid because Israel’s offensive has destroyed nearly all food production capabilities. Israel imposed a blockade on supplies into Gaza on March 2, and limited aid began to enter again late last month after pressure from allies and warnings of famine.

“The world is watching, day after day, horrifying scenes of Palestinians being shot, wounded or killed in Gaza while simply trying to eat,” U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said in a statement Wednesday. He called for a flood of aid to be let in and for the world body to be the one delivering it.

The Security Council has voted on 14 Gaza-related resolutions and approved four since the war began. That is when Hamas-led terrorists stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251.

They are still holding 58 hostages, a third of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants.

The ministry is led by medical professionals but reports to the Hamas-run government. Its toll is seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts, though Israel has challenged its numbers.

AP writer Farnoush Amiri at the United Nations contributed to this report.