A resolution supported by the United States that called for an end to hostilities between Israel and Hamas and the release of all hostages still held in Gaza was rejected by China and Russia on Friday, 22 March 2024, in the UN Security Council.

Along with rejecting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to shrink Gaza’s territory through the establishment of a security buffer zone, the text, which received support from ten other members of the fifteen-member Security Council, urged all parties to the conflict to adhere to International Humanitarian Law.

Aiming to stop the humanitarian crisis that is rapidly getting worse in the besieged Palestinian area, the resolution is the most recent example of the Biden Administration’s gradually changing position on the conflict. Experts disagree, arguing that it does not signify a significant shift from Washington’s consistently supportive stance on Israel at the UN.

Richard Gowan, Director of the International Crisis Group’s U.N. office, stated, “the U.S. was not attempting to make a fundamental shift in its policy at the U.N. over the war.”

Washington has a long history of defending Israel by using its veto power as a permanent member of the Security Council. Since the beginning of the conflict, the council has voted on a cease-fire resolution four times, most recently on Friday. The United States vetoed the previous three attempts because they did not contain wording that acknowledged Israel’s right to self-defense and because they demanded an unconditional cease-fire that was unrelated to the release of the remaining hostages that Hamas was holding.

The new resolution was sponsored by the United States, probably to send a message to the Netanyahu Administration. Gowan stated, “The Israelis were given a small warning to exercise caution by the United States’ willingness to take any action in the Security Council.”

Following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, in which 1,200 people were killed and 240 were held captive, the Biden Administration supported Israel and has continued to give the nation Military assistance despite growing criticism from both the Local and International Communities.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Joe Biden has grown more and more frustrated over what he has called Israel’s “indiscriminate” bombing campaign in Gaza and the country’s choking of humanitarian aid entering the region.

Human Rights Watch’s Director in the United Nations, Louis Charbonneau, highlighted that even if the resolution had passed, it probably would not have had much of an “operational impact,” as it eschewed some of the more aggressive language included in previous Security Council resolutions of a similar nature. “It demands’ a ‘quick and sustained cease-fire,’ if you want to use harsh compulsory language. It doesn’t state that, according to Charbonneau.

The language of Security Council resolutions is carefully chosen since even small changes in word choice and tone can have a big diplomatic impact. Israel is mentioned only once in the 2,000-word U.S. resolution that was submitted on Friday. It states that the Security Council “determines the imperative of an immediate and sustained cease-fire.”

That diluted language was the basis for China’s and Russia’s vetoes. Russia’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzia, stated before the vote that his country was in favor of a cease-fire but called the American Revolution an “empty rhetorical exercise.”

Zhang Jun, China’s Ambassador to the UN, said similar things. He asserted, “The United States wouldn’t have repeatedly vetoed numerous council resolutions if it was serious about a cease-fire.” “It wouldn’t have taken such a diversion and engaged in a word game while remaining vague and unresponsive on important issues.”

Over the past two years, Russia has been under more criticism at the U.N. due to its planned full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. “From the beginning, the Russians, in particular, took advantage of the conflict in Gaza to divert attention from their actions in Ukraine and put the United States on the defensive,” Gowan said.

Permanent council members were frequently able to cooperate effectively on other fronts, but they have traditionally used their veto power to preserve their interests and the interests of their supporters. According to officials, tensions between the West and Russia are now permeating every aspect of the council’s operations.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which is managed by Hamas but whose fatality counts are recognized as generally accurate, more than 32,000 Palestinians have died since the start of the conflict, including about 13,000 children. The World Bank warned this week that because Israel has severely restricted humanitarian aid into Gaza, a large portion of the population is in danger of a catastrophic famine.

The Security Council vote on Friday, 22 March 2024 took place while the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was visiting the Middle East for the sixth time since the start of the war. Blinken stated that it would be a “mistake” for Israel to begin a planned Military offensive in the Southern City of Rafah, where 1.4 million Palestinians had sought safety from the fighting, following a meeting in Cairo to discuss continued efforts to negotiate a cease-fire.

The operation would proceed regardless of US support, a defiant Netanyahu declared. He remarked, “If necessary, we will work alone, but I hope we can accomplish it with American support.”

AFP

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