The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has voted in favour
of a humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian militant
group.
The vote in the 193-member body occurred on Tuesday and had
153 members in favour, 10 against, and 23 abstentions.
After the final votes were displayed, ambassadors and other
diplomats applauded — an indication of growing global support for ending the
Israel-Hamas war which has been raging for over two months.
The United States and Israel, however, opposed the resolution and were joined by Austria, Czechia, Guatemala, Liberia, Micronesia, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, and Paraguay.
The US is believed to be the only entity capable of
persuading Israel to accept a ceasefire as its closest ally and biggest
supplier of weaponry.
But in a rare condemnation of Israel, US President Joe Biden
told donors during a fundraising event for his 2024 re-election campaign, just
before the UNGA vote took place, that Israel was losing international support
because of its “indiscriminate bombing” in Gaza.
The UNGA vote was prompted after the US vetoed a resolution
in the security council last Friday demanding a humanitarian ceasefire.
Although the UNGA’s vote, unlike the security council’s, are
not legally binding, they hold political weight and reflect a global view on
the war.
Dennis Francis, UNGA’s president who chaired the meeting,
said the world is witnessing “an onslaught on civilians, the breakdown of
humanitarian systems, and profound disrespect for both international law and
international humanitarian law”.
Francis said civilians should never undergo the level of
suffering in Gaza and called for the carnage to stop.
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian UN ambassador, hailed the
body’s resolution, saying it is a collective duty to end “this aggression
against our people”.
Gilad Erdan, Israel’s UN ambassador, warned before the vote
that a ceasefire “will only prolong the death and destruction in the region”
and will be “a death sentence for countless more Israelis and Gazans”.
Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas in retaliation for the
October 7 attack by the militants that Israel said killed 1,200 people and saw
240 people taken hostage.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said so far, 18,205
Palestinians have been killed and nearly 50,000 wounded in the war.
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