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WASHINGTON – Russia and China exercised their veto power yesterday on a US draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council regarding Gaza.
The draft resolution did not directly call for a ceasefire, but expressed its support for ongoing international efforts to achieve a ceasefire.
It also condemned Hamas which has led the struggle against Israel’s murderous attacks on Palestinians.
Eleven members voted in favour of the US resolution, while Russia, China, and Algeria opposed it, and Guyana abstained from voting.
The Russian Ambassador to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzya, stated before the vote that the United States had repeatedly promised to reach an agreement to stop the hostilities in Gaza.
He noted that the United States has finally realised the need for a ceasefire, after more than 32,000 people in Gaza have already been killed.
He pointed out that the United States is trying to ‘sell a product’ to the Council by using the word ‘necessary’ in its resolution, indicating that ‘this is not enough’, and the Council must ‘demand a ceasefire’.
Nebenzya added that the text did not include any call for a ceasefire, accusing the US administration of ‘deliberately misleading the international community’.
He further stated that the draft resolution is merely manipulating American voters by falsely calling for a ceasefire.
Nebenzya pointed out that an alternative resolution, which is ‘a balanced and non-political document’, is being circulated by some other members of the Council.
This is the ninth time the Security Council has convened to vote on a resolution regarding the Israeli aggression on Gaza since October 7th.
The Council has adopted two resolutions on the situation, Resolution 2712 and Resolution 2720.
Washington has used its veto power against three draft resolutions, two of which called for an immediate ceasefire.
Israel has said that it intends to carry out its onslaught on Rafah.
Eleven out of the 15 members of the Security Council, namely the United Kingdom, Malta, Mozambique, South Korea, Slovenia, the United States, Sierra Leone, France, Switzerland, Ecuador, and Japan, supported the resolution.
Along with Russia and China, the draft was voted down by Algeria. Guyana abstained.
Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyansky, said earlier that the UN Security Council resolution must contain either a demand or a call for a ceasefire rather than merely note the need for it.
Ahead of the voting, Russian Permanent Representative Vasily Nebenzya called on UN Security Council member nations not to support the US-initiated document, saying that another draft had been submitted by several non-permanent members.
He said he called for supporting this other draft because it unequivocally calls for a ceasefire and unconditional release of hostages.
Israeli government orders seizure of 8,000 dunums of Jordan Valley
THE Palestinian Anti-Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission declared yesterday that the Israeli occupation government has ordered the seizure of 8,000 dunums of land in the Jordan Valley, east of the occupied West Bank.
Muayyad Shaban, the head of the commission, stated that with the approval of the land confiscation order by hard-right Israeli Minister of Finance, Bezalel Smotrich, the occupation government continues its plan to seize control of Palestinian lands under various pretexts, including declaring state lands for the benefit of colonial settlements.
Shaban explained that the year 2024 witnessed the largest land seizure operation by the Israeli occupation by declaring Palestinian lands as state lands, with a total of 10,640 dunums confiscated in two separate announcements so far this year.
The first announcement was made a month ago, targeting the lands of Al-Eizariya and Abu Dis, east of occupied Jerusalem, seizing 2,640 dunums of land.
The second announcement, which was made yesterday, targets the lands of the Jordan Valley, totalling 8,000 dunums, for the expansion of the Israeli settlement of Yafit built on the lands of the Palestinian village of Fasayil in Jericho Governorate, in addition to another 500 dunums seized at the end of 2023 from the lands of the village of Jab’a in Jerusalem Governorate.
Shaban pointed out land seizure announcements aim to create a link between existing settlements, as was the case with the Ma’ale Adumim and Kidar settlements, and the Givat Benjamin and Adam settlements, leading to the isolation and suffocation of Palestinian villages, completely cutting off their geographic contiguity.
He said the latest plan comes in the context of imposing full control over the Jordan Valley, the strategic food reserve for Palestinians, which is targeted by many forced displacement and colonial expansion plans by the Israeli occupation.
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