The resolution, introduced by Algeria on behalf of a group of Arab United Nations member states, “sends the wrong message to Hamas,” said U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, adding, “The fact is that Hamas is You will be given what you asked for without asking.” Do something in return. ”
Instead, Thomas-Greenfield called on council members to support an alternative U.S. resolution, which is still in draft form, calling on Israel to seek a “temporary ceasefire as soon as possible” that would allow for the release of the hostages. and requested that large-scale disputes be refrained from. He will launch an attack on Rafah and take “immediate measures” to allow the smooth flow of humanitarian aid into the enclave through additional land and sea entrances.
So far, direct U.S. appeals to Israel on all of these points have met with little positive response, at least in public. President Biden is under pressure at home and abroad to use U.S. influence more effectively, even as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will not bow to international demands until he wins a complete victory. Military tactics have become increasingly direct, calling them “overreach.” Elimination of Hamas will be achieved.
The United States alone opposed calls for an immediate ceasefire and called for an extension of time for negotiations. With the exception of the United Kingdom, which abstained, the remaining 15 member states voted in favor of Algeria's resolution calling for the release of all hostages.
Ambassadors from each country expressed in speeches both angry and sad that they had had enough.
“The human suffering and humanitarian situation in Gaza is intolerable and the Israeli operation must stop,” French Ambassador Nicolas de Rivière said after voting in favor of the resolution.
China's special envoy Zhang Jun said, “This is not to say that there is no definitive agreement in the Security Council, but rather that the United States' use of its veto power is suppressing the Security Council's agreement.''
Egyptian Ambassador Osama Mahmoud Abdel Khalek Mahmoud said the veto was a “clear example of double standards” and said the Egyptian government, along with Qatar and the United States, is committed to hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas. I'm joining. Mahmoud expressed “disappointment and frustration as a result of the US obstruction.”
He said the vetoed resolution, far from impeding debate on hostage release, would have created “conditions conducive to success.”
As for the negotiations themselves, a draft “framework'' was presented to Israel and Hamas about three weeks ago, and it was initially expected that they would proceed quickly, but things have not gone well. “We have made good progress [the] “The last few weeks… but the last few days have not gone as expected,” Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday.
If an agreement can be reached on the outstanding issues “in the next few days,” he said, “I believe we can get an agreement soon.” …But the past few days haven't been very encouraging. ”
On Tuesday, the Biden administration sent one of the biggest players on the issue, National Security Council Middle East coordinator Brett McGuirk, to Cairo and Tel Aviv “to specifically see if we can carry out this hostage deal.” Society spokesperson John Kirby said. White House reporters. “We're at a very sensitive time right now where these discussions are taking place.”
The US will expand on an earlier week-long halt in November's Israel-Gaza war that led to the release of 105 hostages (women and children) captured during an October 7 Hamas raid. I am striving to do so. Southern Israel. The attack killed approximately 1,200 Israelis and prompted massive military retaliation.
The new framework outlines a six-week cessation of hostilities. The U.S.-proposed resolution calls it a “ceasefire” for the first time, but Biden administration officials hope it will be temporary but long enough to lead to something more permanent.
One administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy, said the U.S. draft resolution was a “positive vision” that made demands not only on Hamas but also on Israel, and said it was a long-term commitment to a durable solution. It included a firm determination to find solutions. Peace and reconstruction of Gaza. Thomas-Greenfield called on other governments to consult on the document, but he did not say when it would be brought to a vote.
The ongoing Israeli operation in Gaza has killed nearly 30,000 people, according to Gazan health officials. Hundreds of thousands of civilians fled to southern Gaza when Israel launched an air and ground offensive in the north, but as many as 300,000 people are estimated to remain there. While aid delivery has been difficult throughout the enclave, few have been able to reach northern Gaza due to continued fighting, destroyed roads and Israeli restrictions on access.
The World Food Program on Tuesday announced it would not be providing so-called “lifesaving” aid to the north due to security concerns amid “unprecedented levels of despair” across Gaza after a truck was attacked by civilian looters. announced that it would temporarily suspend the transportation of goods.
Israel has repeatedly said there is sufficient aid and has accused the United Nations agency UNRWA, the main distributor of humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, of collaborating with Hamas and allowing aid to be siphoned off. “UNRWA is a terrorist organization,” Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan told the Security Council on Tuesday. “In Gaza, Hamas is the United Nations and the United Nations is Hamas.”
Many of those fleeing the destruction in the north are now crammed into tents and makeshift shelters along the Egyptian border and in the streets of Rafah after Israel shifted the focus of its attacks. They head to the southern city of Khan Yunis in pursuit of Hamas leaders who have taken refuge in a network of tunnels.
“Our desire to see the Hamas threat eliminated has not changed at all,” Kirby said. “After what happened on October 7, we believe that the Hamas leadership will not be able to get out of here freely.”
But he reiterated Biden's warning for Israel not to attack Rafah without a “credible and workable plan” to protect civilians. “We do not support a large-scale operation in Rafah that does not properly consider the safety and security of the more than million people who have been displaced,” he said. “At this point, we don't yet know if there is a credible plan for that.” Kirby said McGuirk would repeat the same message when he arrives in Israel on Thursday.
Prime Minister Netanyahu said calling off or postponing the Rafah military offensive would be tantamount to telling Israel to “lose the war” against Hamas. He reiterated on Tuesday that Israel would not change course.
“We are fully committed to continuing the war until we achieve all our goals,” Netanyahu said. “There's no pressure to be able to change this.”
Israel has indicated that the Rafah attack will take place before the start of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting, on March 10.
That became the effective deadline for completing the hostage deal. Israel has said Hamas' counter-offer to release 1,500 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons is “delusional.” Under the framework of the negotiations, three prisoners would be released for every hostage, the same terms as the November suspension.
Officials have suggested that humanitarian aid is currently the biggest problem, with Hamas demanding at least 500 trucks enter Gaza every day. Negotiators fear it will be difficult to exceed the current level of 200 flights, even on a good day, unless new routes are allowed to open.
