United Nations, March 25 (RHC)-- Palestinian resistance movements have welcomed the United Nations Security Council resolution that demands an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip which has been under constant Israeli bombardment since early October.

The Security Council resolution was put forward by the 10 non-permanent members of the Security Council. It received unanimous support from the remaining 14 members on Monday. The United States had abstained.  

Washington had already vetoed similar bids three times since Israel started its brutal campaign in Gaza.

The Security Council resolution demands an immediate ceasefire for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the release of Israelis the resistance movement Hamas took captive during Operation Al-Aqsa Storm on October 7, 2023. It also underscores the “urgent need to expand the flow” of aid into Gaza.

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas welcomed the UN Security Council’s call “for an immediate ceasefire.”

Hamas emphasized the necessity of reaching a permanent ceasefire that led to the withdrawal of all Zionist forces from the Gaza Strip and the return of displaced persons to their homes from which they were forced out.  Hamas also affirmed its readiness to immediately engage in a prisoner exchange process that leads to the release of prisoners held by both sides.

Hamas said the movement stresses “the importance of freedom of movement for Palestinian citizens and the entry of all humanitarian needs for all residents, in all areas of the Gaza Strip, including heavy equipment to remove rubble, so we can bury our martyrs who have been under the rubble for months.”  The movement called on the UN Security Council to force the occupation forces to comply with the ceasefire and to stop the genocidal war and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinian people.

Hamas reaffirmed the right of the Palestinian people “to establish their independent, sovereign Palestinian state with Al-Quds as its capital, and the right to return, self-determination, by international resolutions and international law.”  Hamas appreciated the efforts of Muslim brothers in Algeria and all countries in the Security Council that have supported and continue to support our people and work to stop the aggression and the Zionist genocidal war.

Meanwhile, the Popular Resistance Committees, which is a coalition of a number of Palestinian resistance groups, also welcomed the United Nations Security Council resolution for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.  The coalition said that resistance committees consider the resolution “a slap in the face of the Zionist entity and the Nazi Netanyahu and his fascist war council.”

The coalition called on the Security Council to pressure the Zionist entity to comply with the resolution and “to stop the genocide, massacres, ethnic cleansing against our people, and to fully withdraw from the Gaza Strip and allow the displaced to return to their homes in the northern Strip.”

“We value the efforts of our brothers in Algeria and the countries in the Security Council that are working to stop the Zionist genocide in the Gaza Strip and call on them to continue to implement this resolution in a way that ensures the accountability of the Zionist entity for its crimes,” said the Popular Resistance Committees.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine also issued a statement on Monday saying that the Security Council resolution “is a step towards a sustainable cessation of the aggression.”

“The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine confirmed that the adoption by the UN Security Council today of a resolution for an immediate ceasefire must be a step towards a sustainable cessation of the aggression on the Gaza Strip, an unconditional breaking of the siege, the return of all displaced persons to their homes from which they were displaced, and the conclusion of a prisoner exchange deal through which our prisoners from the occupation's jails are freed, and most importantly, obliging the occupation to implement this resolution,” the statement added.

“The Front considered that the adoption of this resolution by the Security Council, despite attempts to weaken, dilute, and empty it of its content, and link it to a temporary and not sustainable ceasefire by the American administration and its allies, confirms that the entire world is fed up with the Zionist entity for the genocide it commits against our people in the Strip and that the American administration could not bear the consequences of voting for another veto after the escalation of public outrage at the US administration's positions on the aggression,” it added.

“The Front appreciated the valuable efforts made by Algeria, alongside a large number of countries supporting the cause, to reach this resolution and their continued pressure to stop the aggression and genocide war in a sustainable manner,” the statement continued.

The Popular Front emphasized that the lesson is in implementing this resolution and that the ball is now in the United Nations' court to force the occupation “to comply with the resolution on the path to adopting a clear decision to stop the aggression completely and sustainably, especially since the occupation has not implemented a single international resolution throughout its history.”

The UN Security Council’s call for a ceasefire comes as international fears have grown over the planned Israeli ground invasion.   Human rights groups say a ground invasion of Rafah would drastically worsen a heavy civilian death toll and humanitarian crisis in Gaza.