In a significant move, the United Nations Security
Council has approved a resolution calling for a series of humanitarian pauses
in Gaza, CNN reported.
The resolution received support from 12 States during
the session held on Wednesday, while United States, Russia, and United Kingdom
chose to abstain from the vote.
The adopted resolution emphasises the need for “urgent
and extended humanitarian pauses and corridors throughout the Gaza Strip for a
sufficient number of days to enable, consistent with international humanitarian
law, the full, rapid, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access for United
Nations humanitarian agencies and their implementing partners,” as reported by
CNN.
Human Rights Watch welcomed the resolution,
characterising it as a rare and powerful message to Israel, Hamas, and other
armed groups.
Human Rights Watch UN director Louis Charbonneau stated,
“The UN Security Council just sent a rare and powerful message to Israel, Hamas
and other armed groups that compliance with international humanitarian law is
non-negotiable.
So far, there has been widespread disregard for
civilians by all parties. That US finally stopped paralyzing the council on
Israel and Palestine so this resolution on the plight of children in Gaza could
move forward should be a wake-up call to Israeli authorities that global
concern, even among its allies, is strong.”
About a month ago, the United States had vetoed a
similar draft resolution at the UNSC, proposed by Brazil, which called for a
humanitarian pause in Gaza. The draft condemned Hamas’ attacks on Israel, urged
the release of hostages, and called on all parties to comply with international
law.
Following the recent vote, US Ambassador to the UN
Linda Thomas-Greenfield explained that the US sought more time for
on-the-ground diplomacy to play out.
The Security Council, despite being the UN’s most
powerful body, often faces challenges due to the veto power held by its five
permanent members. The October draft received approval from twelve members,
with the UK and Russia abstaining and the US using its veto, according to CNN.
Amid escalating tensions and humanitarian concerns,
the UN’s humanitarian chief, Martin Griffiths, called for an end to the “carnage”
in Gaza.
“As the carnage in Gaza reaches new levels of horror
every day, the world continues to watch in shock as hospitals come under fire,
premature babies die, and an entire population is deprived of the basic means
of survival,” said Martin Griffiths, the UN’s under-secretary-general for
humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator. “This cannot be allowed
to continue.”
While Israel has claimed that underground bunkers
beneath Al-Shifa hospital, the largest hospital in Gaza, were used by Hamas as
a command centre, hospital officials and Hamas have denied these allegations.
The situation remains complex, with ongoing scrutiny
and international efforts to address the humanitarian crisis in the region, CNN
reported.
Over 11,300 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli
strikes on Gaza since October 7. In Israel, the official death toll from Hamas’s
attacks stands roughly at 1,200.
ANI
