Forty days after the Hamas attacks marking the start of the conflict between Israel and Gaza, the UN Security Council finally called, Wednesday, November 15, to “urgent and extended breaks” in the fighting in Gaza, and the establishment “humanitarian corridors” to deliver aid and allow relief to arrive.
Four attempts to reach a resolution in this direction had been blocked in recent weeks. This time, Moscow, Washington and London abstained while the other twelve members voted in favor. The text also calls for liberation “immediate and unconditional” of all hostages held by Hamas.
If it reflects the differences between permanent members, the impasse of recent weeks at the Council has crystallized on a rhetorical point: the United States supported the principle of “humanitarian breaks”, compatible according to them with Israel’s right to self-defense, while Russia insisted on a “ceasefire”, supposed to be more durable.
“Nothing was spared”
But Malta, one of the ten elected members of the Council, orchestrated the negotiations and pushed for concessions. For the Council, it is a question of emphasizing above all the humanitarian emergency, for the children of Gaza and for the humanitarian personnel of the UN – more than a hundred UN employees have been killed since the start of the Israeli strikes, one historical record for a single conflict.
“Gaza is bleeding, nothing has been spared, not even our hospitals”lamented the representative of the Palestinian Authority, Riyad Mansour, while the Israeli army’s operation in the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza was still underway. “Five thousand children were killed in the Gaza Strip [selon un décompte du ministère de la santé administré sur place par le Hamas]. It’s a stain on the forehead [des diplomates] of the Council, they should have acted a long time ago. This resolution is a small step in the right direction. »
Even before the end of the meeting, Israel rejected this text, considering it “disconnected from the situation on the ground”. “Despite what the Council decides, Israel will continue to act according to international law, wrote the Israeli ambassador, Gilad Erdan, on the social network. Israel will continue to act until Hamas is destroyed and the hostages are returned. »
“Real shame”
“Resolutions of the Council apply immediately to all members. It is therefore very disappointing that this is Israel’s first reaction, reacted Maltese Vanessa Frazier to the press, recalling that the texts voted by the Council constitute international law. We hope they will take the time to read the resolution. »
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