After Russia and China vetoed the US-authored draft resolution condemning the terror attacks by Hamas on Israel, Gilad Erdan, the Israeli ambassador to the Unit
The U.N. Security Council failed again Wednesday to address the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza, rejecting rival United States and Russian resolutions. The council is the U.N.’s most powerful body, charged with maintaining international peace and security, but its divisions have left it impotent and scrambling to try to find a resolution with acceptable language. The resolution drafted by the United States, Israel’s closest ally, would have reaffirmed Israel’s right to self-defense, urged respect for international laws — especially protection of civilians — and called for “humanitarian pauses” to deliver desperately needed aid to Gaza.
The U.N. Security Council rejected a Russian resolution Monday night that condemned violence and terrorism against civilians but made no mention of Hamas, whose surprise attack that killed 1,300 Israelis was the worst Jewish massacre since the World War II Nazi Holocaust. Only four countries joined Russia in voting for the resolution. Russia's U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, had urged support for the resolution to respond to the “unprecedented exacerbation” of the situation, citing the council's inaction since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip.