The United States (US) has exercised its veto power in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday to block a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. This marks the fifth instance since October 2023 that Washington has opposed a ceasefire amid the ongoing brutal Israeli war in Gaza.
The UNSC resolution called for an “immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire” while urging the release of hostages currently held by Palestinian resistance groups in the Gaza Strip. Among the 15 member states of the UNSC—comprising 10 non-permanent members—the US was the sole nation to vote against the resolution, subsequently using its veto power as a permanent member to block its adoption.
Robert Wood, US Deputy Ambassador to the UN, stated that Washington would only support a resolution explicitly demanding the immediate release of hostages as part of the ceasefire agreement.
“A lasting end to the war must be achieved with the release of the hostages. These two urgent goals are closely interconnected. This resolution fails to address that need, and for that reason, the United States cannot support it,” Wood said, as quoted by AFP on Thursday (November 21, 2024).
Wood explained that the US sought compromise, but the proposed text of the resolution would send a “dangerous message” to Palestinian militant group Hamas, suggesting that “there is no need to return to the negotiating table.”
The ongoing brutal war in Gaza has killed nearly 44,000 people and displaced almost the entire population of the enclave at least once. The indiscriminate military campaign was launched by Israel in response to Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel, which Israeli authorities claim killed 1,200 people and took hundreds hostage.
UNSC members strongly criticized the US for blocking the resolution, which was proposed by 10 elected Council members: Algeria, Ecuador, Guyana, Japan, Malta, Mozambique, South Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, and Switzerland.
“It is deeply regrettable that due to the use of the veto, this Council has once again failed to uphold its responsibility to maintain international peace and security,” said Malta’s UN Ambassador Vanessa Frazier following the failed vote, adding that the resolution’s text was “by no means maximalist.”
“It represented the bare minimum necessary to begin addressing the desperate situation on the ground,” she said.
Food security experts have warned of impending famine among Gaza’s 2.3 million residents.
US President Joe Biden, whose term ends on January 20, has offered strong diplomatic backing to Israel, continued supplying weapons for the war, and made unsuccessful attempts to mediate a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that would release hostages in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel.
After blocking previous resolutions on Gaza, Washington abstained in a March vote allowing a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire to pass.
A senior US official, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity ahead of Wednesday’s vote, said the UK had proposed new language supported by the US as a compromise, but it was rejected by elected members.
The official claimed that some members were more interested in securing a US veto than in compromising on the resolution, accusing US adversaries Russia and China of encouraging those members.
French Ambassador Nicolas de Rivière noted that the US-rejected resolution “very explicitly” called for the release of hostages.
“France still has two hostages in Gaza, and we deeply regret that the Security Council could not formulate this demand,” he said.
China’s UN Ambassador Fu Cong stated that every time the US uses its veto to protect Israel, the death toll in Gaza continues to rise.
