Politics

UN General Assembly Demands Immediate Gaza Ceasefire

Thursday 12 December 2024 - 15:38

The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution on Wednesday calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Gaza. The vote was overwhelming, with 158 in favor, 9 against, and 13 abstentions. The resolution urges the immediate and permanent halt to hostilities, as well as the unconditional release of all hostages.

This resolution mirrors a previous proposal vetoed by the United States in the UN Security Council, which sought a ceasefire contingent upon the release of hostages. The US has consistently backed Israel's position that a ceasefire should only occur if Hamas releases all hostages, fearing that otherwise, Hamas would have no incentive to do so.

Ahead of the vote, Israel's UN representative, Danny Danon, condemned the resolution as illogical, arguing it would not reflect compassion but complicity. The General Assembly, often bypassed by the Security Council on contentious issues like Gaza and Ukraine, passed this non-binding resolution which also calls for increased humanitarian aid to Gaza, particularly in the besieged northern areas.

The debate leading up to the vote saw strong statements from several nations in support of the Palestinians. Slovenia’s UN envoy Samuel Zbogar described Gaza as "destroyed," while Algeria’s deputy ambassador warned that the cost of global inaction on Palestine would be heavy.

Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel resulted in over 1,200 Israeli deaths, including many civilians, and led to the abduction of 251 hostages. Israel's retaliatory strikes in Gaza have resulted in over 44,000 Palestinian deaths, the majority of which are civilians.

Palestinian UN Ambassador Riyad Mansour highlighted the dire conditions in Gaza, calling the suffering of its people an urgent call for action. Despite this setback, he reaffirmed the Palestinian commitment to advocating for an unconditional ceasefire.

The resolution also calls on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to propose measures for advancing accountability, with examples including the creation of mechanisms to investigate war crimes in Syria.

In addition to the ceasefire resolution, the Assembly passed another measure demanding Israel respect the mandate of UNRWA, the UN agency that supports Palestinian refugees. Israel has announced plans to ban the agency starting January 28, accusing some of its employees of supporting Hamas.