By Nnps Desk

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UNITED NATIONS, Sep 19 (APP): The United States vetoed on Thursday a UN Security Council resolution that would have called for an unconditional ceasefire in Gaza and that Israel lift all restrictions on aid deliveries to the besieged Palestinian enclave, with Pakistan “profoundly” regretting the exercise of veto against a solely humanitarian text.

The resolution, sponsored by the 10 elected members of the 15-member Council, received 14 votes in favour. It was the sixth time the US had cast a veto in the Council over the nearly two-year Israeli war in Gaza.

More than 65,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, according to the Gaza health authorities.

Thursday’s negative vote was cast as the Council held its 10,000th meeting against the backdrop of famine and hunger spreading in the besieged enclave and an ongoing Israeli offensive to take full control of Gaza City.

The resolution also demanded the release of all hostages held by Hamas and for Israel to lift all restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid and ensure that it is safely distributed to the population, in particular by UN agencies and partners.

The Council’s 10 non-permanent members, who submitted the draft, are: Pakistan, Algeria, Denmark, Greece, Guyana, Panama, South Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, and Somalia.

The five permanent members – China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States – have the right to veto any resolution and all have exercised this power at some time.

Thursday’s Security Council meeting was presided over by South Korea, which holds the rotating presidency for the month of September.

Speaking prior to the vote, US delegate Morgan Ortagus stated that Washington’s opposition to the resolution “will come as no surprise” as it fails to condemn Hamas or recognize Israel’s right to defend itself.

The text also “wrongly legitimizes the false narratives benefiting Hamas, which have sadly found currency in this Council,” she said.

“This resolution also refuses to acknowledge and seeks to return to a failed system that has allowed Hamas to enrich and strengthen itself at the expense of civilians in need.”

Pakistan’s UN Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad regretted the US action “profoundly”, saying, “On the eve of the 80th General Assembly Session and the High-Level week, and 10,000th meeting – what a dark moment – in this Chamber?”

“What prevented the Council from acting was the exercise of the veto,” the Pakistani envoy asserted. “That carries a heavy responsibility. And that is where the apology must lie,” he said.

“In moments of such grave human suffering, preventing the Council from fulfilling its mandate risks being seen as enabling the continuation of that suffering. Those who have chosen this course must review their position.”

Highlighting the plight of the people of Gaza who are trapped between relentless bombardment and a suffocating blockade, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said, “In that grim setting, today’s failure sends a dangerous message: that the lives of two million besieged Palestinians are deemed expendable and can be subordinated to political considerations.

“Every hour of obstruction deepens the wound — and aggravates the suffering of the people of Gaza. Each failure compounds the cost – also for the credibility of this Council,” he added.

“The majority of this Council has acted responsibly — We have fulfilled our duty under the Charter. The shortcomings lie not with the Council as a whole, but with the constraints imposed on it.”

In this regard, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad pointed out that famine threatens to spread across the Gaza Strip; the Israeli onslaught is now claiming dozens of lives daily and could uproot a million people; the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank exposes the entrenched nature of occupation and its true intentions – a death knell to the two-state solution.

“What a stark manifestation of settler colonialism in the 21st century,” the Pakistani envoy remarked.

Pakistan, he said, reaffirms its unwavering support for the Palestinian people in their just struggle for self-determination, dignity, and justice, and calls for an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire – an end to starvation and the blockade, with full access through multiple entry and distribution points for humanitarian aid throughout the Gaza Strip, and a just, lasting and peaceful settlement of the Palestinian question, with the establishment of a sovereign, contiguous Palestinian State, on pre-1967 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

“We stand on the side of humanity and with justice, and with international law,” the Pakistani envoy said.

“The world is watching. The cries of children should pierce our hearts. The anguish of mothers should shake our conscience. Palestine looks to this Council — and we cannot turn away.”

“Forgive us,” said Algeria’s UN Ambassador Amar Bendjama, after the vote. “Despite the sincere efforts, this Security Council was not of any help for you,” he said, addressing the people of Gaza.

Thanking those present for their efforts to “try to bring this nightmare and this genocide against the Palestinian people to an end”, the State of Palestine’s Ambassador Riyadh Mansoor stressed that the international community “cannot fail them any longer”.

Israel’s Ambassador Danny Dannon, meanwhile, claimed that today’s meeting was not diplomacy — “it is theatre”. He added: “Make no mistake — Hamas waits in the wings, the only beneficiary of this stage drama.”