The United States has again vetoed a draft UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution on Israel’s war in Gaza, prompting widespread criticism from rivals and allies alike,
Al Jazeera reports.
The move on Tuesday was the third US veto of a UNSC resolution demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, and came a day after Washington circulated a resolution that would support a temporary ceasefire linked to the release of all Israeli captives from the Palestinian enclave.
The vote in the 15-member council was 13-1, with the United Kingdom abstaining, reflecting the strong support from countries around the globe for ending the devastating conflict that has killed more than 29,000 Palestinians.
Here’s how countries and world leaders responded.
China
Zhang Jun, China’s envoy to the UN, expressed “strong disappointment and dissatisfaction” with the US, according to the Xinhua news agency.
“The US veto sends a wrong message, pushing the situation in Gaza into a more dangerous one,” said Zhang, adding that objection to a ceasefire in Gaza is “nothing different from giving the green light to the continued slaughter”.
“Only by extinguishing the flames of war in Gaza can the world prevent the fires of hell from engulfing the entire region,” Xinhua quoted him as saying.
Russia
Russia’s Ambassador to the UN Vasily Nebenzia said the US veto marked “another black page in the history of the Security Council”.
He accused the US of trying to play for time so that Israel could complete its “inhumane plans” for Gaza, namely to squeeze the Palestinians out of the territory and completely “cleanse” the enclave.
He added that no matter how bitter the “aftertaste” of the vote may be, “we are not in the mood to give up”.
France
France’s UN envoy Nicolas de Riviere expressed regret that a UNSC ceasefire resolution “could not be adopted, given the disastrous situation” in Gaza.
De Riviere added that France, which voted for the resolution, would continue to work towards all captives being released and for a ceasefire to be “implemented immediately”.
Algeria
Algeria’s envoy said the UNSC has “failed once again” and warned the move could have profound consequences for the Middle East as a whole.
“Our message to you today is that the international community should respond to the calls for ending the killing of Palestinians by calling for an immediate ceasefire. All those impeding such calls should review their policies and their calculations because wrong decisions today will have a cost on our region and our world tomorrow. And this cost will be violence and instability,” Amar Bendjama said.
“So ask yourselves, examine your conscience. What will your decisions today cause? How will history judge you?”
