UNGA takes lead on Gaza genocide, bypasses Security Council
3 Min Read
In a pivotal moment at the United Nations, the General Assembly is poised for a crucial vote on Tuesday, deliberating a non-binding resolution that urgently calls for a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza.
-
Riyad Mansour, Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, speaks during a United Nations General Assembly meeting about the ongoing genocide in Gaza, at UN headquarters in New York City on November 28, 2023. (AFP)
The UN General Assembly is set to vote on Tuesday on a non-binding resolution urging an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza; a plea that the inactive Security Council has not been able to make.
The United States, one of the five permanent Security Council members, vetoed a draft resolution on Friday, highlighting a clear complicity in the ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
The Council, after over a month since the commencement of the brutal Israeli genocide, finally issued a collective but feeble call for humanitarian "pauses" in mid-November, following four previously rejected texts.
The recent failure of the Security Council drew condemnation from numerous countries and human rights organizations. UN Secretary-General Guterres expressed concern on Sunday, stating that the authority and credibility of the Council had been "undermined".
Gaza Health Ministry reported that since October 7, 18,205 Palestinians, predominantly women and children, have been massacred in "Israel's" hysteric bombardment.
Amid "Israel’s" intense attacks moving further to the south, nearly a million #children have been forced out of their homes in #Gaza, and more than half the population is going hungry in the besieged #Palestinian enclave, #UN officials have stated further underscoring the human… pic.twitter.com/zDLcWA1qly
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) December 12, 2023
The situation is expected to worsen as a significant number of people remain trapped under debris, while ambulances remain unable to reach the wounded due to depleted fuel reserves.
The UN is grieving the loss of over 100 of its aid workers since the Israeli aggression on Gaza began. Following the US veto on Friday, Palestinian Ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour remarked, "There are those who cannot see reality as they should see it; but eventually they will cave in under the massive pressure of humanity from one corner of the globe to the other corner."
Arab nations rally for action
To exert pressure, Arab nations have requested a new special session of the General Assembly scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. This follows a visit by over a dozen Security Council ambassadors to the Rafah border point.
The draft resolution, as observed by AFP, closely mirrors the one blocked by the United States in the Council on Friday. It expresses concern about the dire humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, urging the protection of civilians, and humanitarian access.
Having worked for weeks in hospitals in #Gaza during the Israeli aggression on the Strip, renowned British-Palestinian plastic surgeon, Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta bore witness to the horrific crimes that were committed there.#PalestineGenocide#GazaUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/aOVCQuh0lF
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) December 11, 2023
Similar to the resolution passed in October, which called for an immediate, durable, and sustained humanitarian truce leading to a ceasefire in Gaza, the new draft does not condemn the Palestinian Resistance, which predictably angers the United States and the Israeli occupation.
Read next: Denuding civilians, W. phosphorus: US overlooks Israeli war crimes
