On December 8th, 2023, the United Nations Security Council convened a meeting with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, invoking Article 99 of the UN Charter, urging “the Council to help avert a humanitarian catastrophe and for a humanitarian ceasefire [in Gaza] to be declared”. He also ensured that the member states were aware of the power they wield over the matter. It's not an ordinary decision, though. It was one to save an entire people from the atrocities committed against them since October of 2023. This is not to undermine or forget the painful history of the Israel-Palestine conflict since 1948. The Palestinian people have borne the weight of the apartheid, injustice and violence against them for years now.
When the vote took place, 13 nations voted in favour of the resolution. However, the United States of America vetoed the resolution. Riyad Mansour, Ambassador to the Permanent Observer of the Observer State of Palestine to the UN, informed the committee that the way Israel had increased the bombing had left all channels that could allow the movement of aid into the Gaza strip completely inept. His argument was straightforward. By not calling for a ceasefire, countless innocent Palestinian lives were being robbed of their right to live, and war crimes would receive a green signal. Moreover, he demanded the International Law that accords exceptionality to Israel needed to be scrutinized and changed because of the threats it posed to an entire people.
On the other hand, the Ambassador to the USA, while making it clear that it would not support displacement and forced relocation of people from Gaza or the West Bank, also vetoed the resolution on the following grounds. He said that “while the US strongly supports a durable peace in which both Israel and Palestine can live in peace and security, we do not support calls for an immediate ceasefire. This would only plant the seeds for the next war, because Hamas has no desire to see a durable peace, to see a two-State solution”. Israel's ambassador declared that it would undoubtedly prioritize the movement of humanitarian aid but would not back down from its mission to destroy Hamas. He complained that Hamas had not been held accountable for its evils. He said that Hamas’ bombing of Israel was a phenomenon that was reminiscent of the atrocities of the Holocaust. Israel completely shifted the blame for poor aid conditions onto Hamas by saying that it had “ violated the terms of the truth.”
USA’s decision to veto the resolution garnered worldwide condemnation. While the Secretary-General had explicitly mentioned that every decision and move of the UNSC was being watched by the people with expectations and hopes, the USA rejected the resolution, citing, in addition to the reasons as mentioned earlier, that none of its suggestions were taken into consideration and the agreement was heavily lopsided. You can read other nations’ responses and stance on the matter here. The United Nations General Assembly also convened an Emergency Session to discuss a humanitarian ceasefire as a solution, which received overwhelming support from most members. A total of 153 countries voted in favour of the resolution on Tuesday, 10 countries voted against it, while 23 abstained. However, the UNGA’s decision is not binding upon the UNSC. Although it is undoubtedly figurative in telling the world that the majority of the international order wants a humanitarian ceasefire immediately.
It is alarming that a body of such a cadre could not reach a consensus and take appropriate action when it needed to do something the most. Even during the time when the Russia-Ukraine conflict was at its peak, and it’s still ongoing, the UN failed to protect the international order from a war that would have lasting impacts. Its ineffectiveness then allowed Israel to question why the situation in Palestine was being dealt with differently than that in Ukraine. That is how the Ambassador even justified annihilating Hamas, be it at the cost of civilian lives, for the sake of the stability of the European Union. In the modern day, when debates around the relevance of the United Nations have become so commonplace, the UN remains disappointing by remaining underwhelmingly active and impactful time and time again.
PC: UN Photo/Loey Felipe A wide view of the UN Security Council chambers as members meet on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.
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