The resolution, drafted by Malta, was adopted by twelve votes in favor and three abstentions; those of the United States, the United Kingdom and Russia.
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The end of a long silence. For the first time in more than a month of war between Israel and Hamas, the hitherto divided UN Security Council called, Wednesday, November 15, for “humanitarian breaks” of a few days in the Gaza Strip.
The resolution drafted by Malta, adopted by twelve votes in favor and three abstentions (United States, United Kingdom, Russia), “calls for extensive and urgent humanitarian pauses and corridors for a sufficient number of days” to enable the provision of humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza. This wording raises the question of how many days would be considered “sufficient”. A previous version of the text called for an initial pause of five consecutive days within 24 hours of the adoption of the resolution.
“Mobilize resources”
“It has to be long enough to allow us to mobilize resources, once we have enough fuel, to provide the population with what they need,” commented Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN secretary general, refusing to go into more details. Security Council resolutions are binding, which does not prevent some countries from ignoring them.
The resolution, which emphasizes the situation of children in almost every paragraph, “requires all parties to respect their obligations under international law, especially regarding the protection of civilians, particularly children.” She “call” also at the “immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups, especially children”, without condemning the bloody attack by the Palestinian movement against Israel on October 7.
Exposing its long-standing divisions on the Israeli-Palestinian issue to light, the Council rejected four draft resolutions in quick succession in October, rejections marked in particular by Russian and Chinese vetoes on one side, American on the other, on competing texts. Faced with the inability to act of the Council, responsible for maintaining international peace, the General Assembly took over.