Fourteen countries vote for the resolution, which welcomes a Gaza ceasefire proposal, as Russia abstains.
Photo >> A Palestinian girl walks through the debris a day after the Israeli raid. There are damaged cars and men standing around in the background.
United Nations, June 10 (RHC)-- The UN Security Council has approved a resolution endorsing a ceasefire plan aimed at ending the eight-month Israeli assault on Gaza. The vote on the U.S.-sponsored resolution on Monday was 14-0, with Russia abstaining.
The resolution welcomes a ceasefire proposal announced by President Joe Biden that the U.S. claims Israel has accepted, although some Israeli officials have promised to continue the war until the elimination of Hamas, the Palestinian group that governs Gaza.
It calls on Hamas, which initially said it viewed the proposal “positively,” to accept the three-phase plan. It urges Israel and Hamas “to fully implement its terms without delay and without condition.”
Hamas was quick to welcome the resolution. In a statement, Hamas said it is ready to cooperate with mediators and enter indirect negotiations over the implementation of the principles of the agreement.
Al Jazeera’s Gabriel Elizondo, reporting from the UN headquarters in New York, said the Security Council passed the resolution “overwhelmingly and it is binding in international law.”
The “big question moving forward”, Elizondo said, is whether it be enforced and implemented.
“The U.S. has said very clearly that Israel has agreed to this. So that puts quite a lot of pressure on Israel to abide by this,” he said.
U.S. deputy ambassador Robert Wood told reporters earlier on Monday that the U,S, wanted to make sure all 15 Security Council members were on board to support what he described as “the best, most realistic opportunity to bring at least a temporary halt to this war.”
Observers said that one must keep in mind that Tel Aviv has never abided by UN Security Council resolutions and has expressed its total disrespect for the will of the international community.
