[News] UN security council passes immediate ceasefire resolution; US ‘disappointed’ after Israel cancels visit

[GL HERO SHIMA]

UN security council passes resolution calling for ceasefire in Gaza after US abstains

For the first time the UN security council has voted for a call for a ceasefire in Gaza, after the US abstained, rather than using its veto as it has done on previous occasions. Russia and China have also previously vetoed texts.

The resolution that passed was written by the 10 elected members to the council, and proposed in the chamber by Mozambique’s representative.

Russia attempted to amend the text by restoring it to an earlier draft which included the word “permanent”, but the bid failed.

14 members of the UN security council voted for the resolution, while the US abstained.

Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu had earlier threatened to cancel a planned delegation to Washington if the US did not exercise its veto

An Israeli minister, Gideon Saar, has resigned from Benjamin Netanyahu’s emergency unity government, citing the fact that he was not included in the country’s highest-level war cabinet.

Saar joined the unity government along with several other members of the opposition after the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October.

His departure, reported by Reuters, is not expected to affect the stability of Netanyahu’s government, which still controls a clear majority in parliament.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2024/mar/25/israel-gaza-live-unrwa-aid-north-gaza-un-security-council-vote-ceasefire-middle-east-latest