US vetoes UN resolution calling for ‘immediate humanitarian ceasefire’ in Gaza

The United States vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution on Tuesday that called for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in Gaza.

The US was the only country on the 15-member council to vote against the resolution, while the United Kingdom abstained.

The resolution was tabled by Algeria and has been backed by more than three-quarters of the 193-member UN General Assembly. It comes as Israel prepares an offensive on the southern Gazan city of Rafah, where more than a million displaced Palestinians are sheltering.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, said the resolution would “negatively impact” negotiations between Israel and Hamas on the release of hostages held in Gaza.

“Demanding an immediate, unconditional ceasefire without an agreement requiring Hamas to release the hostages will not bring about a durable peace. Instead, it could extend the fighting between Hamas and Israel, Ms Thomas-Greenfield said.

The US has instead proposed a draft resolution calling for a “temporary ceasefire” in Gaza “as soon as practicable.”

The draft resolution also warns against Israel’s ground incursion in Rafah in southern Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have sought refuge after they were violently displaced by Israel’s months-long campaign.

Using unusually critical language for the US of its close ally Israel, the resolution notes that an offensive in Rafah would “result in further harm to civilians and their further displacement including potentially into neighbouring countries” and “would have serious implications for regional peace and security, and therefore underscores that such a major ground offensive should not proceed under current circumstances.”

Last week, President Biden