US vetoes Security Council ceasefire

The United States on Tuesday cast the lone vote against a United Nations Security Council resolution that would have called for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip over fears it could disrupt hostage negotiations.

It was the third time Washington used its veto to block a resolution demanding a halt to fighting in Gaza, underscoring America's isolation in its continued, strong support for Israel.

During the four months of war, Israel has come under increasing international pressure over the scope and intensity of its campaign against Hamas in Gaza, with many leaders decrying the high number of civilian casualties.

Algeria's UN ambassador, Amar Bendjama, lashed out at the United States on Tuesday, telling the council that the veto “implies an approval of the brutal violence and collective punishment imposed on the Palestinians.” He said: “Silence is not a viable option, now is the time for action and the time for the truth.”

The diplomatic maneuvering comes as aid agencies warn that urgent aid is needed for a population suffering from severe malnutrition and the spread of infectious diseases.

Thirteen members of the Security Council voted in favor of the resolution, which was drafted by Algeria, while Britain abstained.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the United Nations, said the resolution would jeopardize Washington's ongoing negotiating efforts with Qatar and Egypt to reach a deal that would release hostages from Gaza in exchange for a temporary humanitarian ceasefire -the-fire. Those negotiations failed, with neither Israel nor Hamas reaching a consensus on the terms of a deal.

“Any action the council takes now should not hinder these sensitive and ongoing negotiations,” Ms Thomas-Greenfield said. “Demanding an immediate unconditional ceasefire without an agreement requiring Hamas to release the hostages will not bring lasting peace.”

Aid agencies were scathing in their criticism of the US position. Avril Benoit, executive director of Doctors Without Borders in the United States, called the United States' repeated blocking of ceasefire resolutions “unconscionable.”

“The United States in the UN Security Council is essentially sabotaging all efforts to provide aid,” she said Tuesday on a panel with other aid agency leaders. “The statements are one thing, the actions are another. We see that a ceasefire is the only way to guarantee the safe delivery of aid to the people who need it most.”

Israeli and US officials have argued that an immediate ceasefire would allow Hamas to regroup and strengthen itself in Gaza, and reduce pressure to reach a deal on the release of hostages held in the area are held.

The United States has drafted a rival resolution, still in the early stages of negotiations, calling for a temporary humanitarian ceasefire “as soon as practicable” and the release of hostages. The use of the term “ceasefire” in the draft resolution would be a first for the United States since the start of the war in Gaza.

The draft also states that the Israeli army is not allowed to carry out an offensive in Rafah under the current circumstances.

With the United States expected to circulate its draft to Council members, two diplomats said the resolution would be challenged given the US veto on Tuesday, and that Russia and China were expected to veto it.

Waves of Palestinians have sought refuge in Rafah in recent months after Israeli ground forces entered northern Gaza towns and then pushed south. Israeli officials have said they are working on a plan to evacuate Rafah of civilians, and that they intend to destroy Hamas battalions there – one of Israel's main objectives since the October 7 attacks Hamas led on Israel, in which about 1,200 people died, Israeli officials said.

But in a sign that fighting in the north remained active despite four months of bombardments there, the Israeli army ordered the evacuation of two neighborhoods of Gaza City on Tuesday. The U.N. World Food Program also said Tuesday it was halting deliveries in the north, describing scenes of chaos as its teams faced looting, hungry crowds and gunfire in recent days.

While the heaviest fighting and most intense bombardments have moved further south in recent weeks to areas around the town of Khan Younis, Tuesday's Israeli army evacuation order for the Zaytoun and Turkman neighborhoods of Gaza City underscored the sense that by many Gaza residents expressed: nowhere is safe. More than 29,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the start of Israel's campaign, according to area health officials.

World Food Program deliveries in the north had been suspended for the past three weeks due to security concerns, and the agency tried to restart them on Sunday with an initial convoy. But the trucks were surrounded by “crowds of hungry people” as they headed toward Gaza City and were forced to fend off attempts to climb onto the vehicles, a statement said.

Another convoy on Monday “faced complete chaos and violence due to the breakdown of civil order,” the statement added, saying several trucks were looted and a driver was beaten.

The World Food Program pointed to a UN report published on Monday showing that acute malnutrition has increased in the northern part of the enclave, with one in six children in the northern part of the area suffering from it.

In October, the United States vetoed a humanitarian resolution, put forward by Brazil, to provide aid to Gaza at a time when Israel had placed the strip under a strict blockade of vital aid, saying it would hamper efforts of President Biden with the government of Israel. to win aid deliveries to Gaza.

The United States' vetoes have also allowed two countries often criticized for their own human rights abuses, Russia and China, to accuse Washington of being a major roadblock in preventing more death and suffering in Gaza. “It is not that the Security Council does not have an overwhelming consensus, but rather it is the exercise of the veto by the United States that has suppressed the Council's consensus,” said Chinese Ambassador Zhang Jun.

And in a sign of the pervasive concern over the humanitarian situation in Gaza, Prince William, the heir to the British throne, made a rare, if measured, public statement on the war on Tuesday.

“I remain deeply concerned about the dire human consequences of the conflict in the Middle East since the Hamas terrorist attack,” he said in comments from his office.

“Like so many others, I want the fighting to end as soon as possible,” he added. “There is a desperate need for more humanitarian support to Gaza. It is crucial that help arrives and that the hostages are released.”

Matthew Mpoke Bigg And Stephen's Castle reporting contributed.