A UN Security Council resolution calling for a “humanitarian pause” in the blazing Israel-Hamas conflict was vetoed by the US on Wednesday because the wording did not respect Israel’s right to self-defence, as per the US ambassador.
Twelve out of 15 Council members voted in favor of the resolution put forward by Brazil and negotiated over several days, while Russia and the United Kingdom abstained.
The United States was the only vote against it, but as one of the body’s five permanent members, its vote counts as a veto. “The United States is disappointed this resolution made no mention of Israel’s rights of self-defence,” US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said after the vote. The resolution said the Council “firmly condemns all violence and hostilities against civilians and all acts of terrorism.”
It said the body “unequivocally rejects and condemns the heinous terrorist attacks by Hamas… and the taking of hostages.”
