At the same time, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that Israel's campaign had hindered humanitarian activities in the Gaza Strip.
 |
| Israel, Hamas, Palestine, the US and Russia have had different reactions to the UN Security Council Resolution on humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip. (Source: Reuters) |
On December 22, Israel 's Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Gilad Erdan criticized the Security Council (UNSC) after the body passed a resolution on humanitarian assistance in the Gaza Strip. The diplomat stated: "The UN's focus on aid mechanisms for Gaza is unnecessary and far from reality. Israel has allowed the delivery of aid on the necessary scale. The UN should focus on the humanitarian crisis of the hostages."
He also thanked the United States for its strong support for Israel in negotiating the UN Security Council resolution, which he said upheld Israel's security rights in assessing aid deliveries to Gaza.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority (PA) called the resolution “a step in the right direction... to help end military action, ensure the delivery of aid and protect the Palestinian people.”
For its part, Hamas said the UN resolution was “insufficient” to meet the needs of the people in the region. “Over the past five days, the US administration has attempted to strip away the essence of the resolution and issue it in this weak formula… This challenges the will of the international community and the UN General Assembly to stop Israel’s military action against our defenseless Palestinian people,” Hamas said in a statement.
Earlier the same day, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2720 sponsored by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), with 13 votes in favor and two abstentions from the US and Russia. The resolution calls on all parties to comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law; to increase the provision of urgent, safe and unhindered humanitarian aid directly to Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip; and to release all hostages immediately and unconditionally.
At the same time, the resolution calls for “urgently” establishing a UN mechanism to expedite humanitarian aid to Gaza through countries not involved in the conflict; at the same time ensuring that aid reaches the people in this area.
Notably, the US did not use its veto power in this vote, although it did not support the resolution. Speaking after the vote, US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield stressed that since the conflict broke out, Washington has tried to help ease the humanitarian crisis, promote aid into Gaza, rescue hostages and promote the protection of innocent civilians and humanitarian workers, towards a lasting peace. However, she continued to regret that the UNSC resolution did not criticize Hamas' attacks on October 7.
Meanwhile, Russian Ambassador Vassily A. Nebenzia said that by passing this "completely harmless" resolution, the Security Council will give the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) full authority to continue its current military operations in the Gaza Strip.
In related news, on the same day, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that Israel's attack on the Gaza Strip is causing major obstacles to the distribution of humanitarian aid inside the Gaza Strip.
He said it was wrong to judge the effectiveness of humanitarian operations in Gaza based on the number of trucks allowed to carry aid across the Egyptian border. “The way Israel is conducting this attack is causing major obstacles to the distribution of humanitarian aid inside the Gaza Strip,” he said.
Mr. Guterres emphasized that an effective aid operation in the Gaza Strip requires security, the ability of humanitarian workers to work in a safe environment, logistics capacity, and the continuity of trade. However, according to the head of the United Nations, these four elements currently do not exist in Gaza.
Source
Comment (0)