"The United Nations Security Council will vote on a resolution demanding the suspension of Israel's war against the Hamas terrorist organization and the provision of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip tomorrow morning (Wednesday).
The vote, which was originally scheduled for Monday afternoon, has been delayed three times in an attempt to avoid an American veto of the resolution. It was previously scheduled for 5 pm Eastern Standard Time today. The US has vetoed multiple resolutions on the war between Israel and Hamas since the October 7 massacre, though it allowed the passage of a resolution that failed to condemn Hamas on November 15.
The initial drafts of the resolution published Monday morning called for the ‘urgent and sustainable cessation of hostilities,’ implying a complete ceasefire that would leave Hamas in power in Gaza despite its leaders' stated goal of repeating the atrocities of October 7.
The new version of the resolution, revealed by Al Jazeera journalist Rami Ayari, replaces ‘cessation’ with the word ‘suspension,’ a change that would imply an impermanent ceasefire.
It is unclear if this change will be enough to ensure that the US abstains and allows the resolution to pass rather than use its veto.
The draft resolution ‘demands the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, as well as ensuring humanitarian access to address the medical needs of all hostages.’
The resolution contains not a single mention of Hamas, Israel's right to self-defense, the constant rocket attacks against Israel, or the terror tunnel network in Gaza.
Touro Insitute on Human Rights and the Holocaust Director and Human Rights Voices President Professor Anne Bayefsky condemned the resolution and the Biden Administration for allowing the UAE to draft the resolution in such a one-sided manner.
‘The Biden Administration is now using the UN Security Council to bully and threaten the one and only Jewish state while currying favor with the 56 Arab and Islamic forces running circles around the U.S. The Council has been busy negotiating a resolution that has almost made it to the finish line. A resolution that refuses to condemn Hamas for October 7th and beyond, makes no mention of Israel's UN Charter right of self-defense, and says nothing about Palestinian rockets or terror tunnels. It also sets up a never-ending array of Israel-bashing sessions at the Council from this point on. (Instead of spending time on the billions suffering around the world who don't have wealthy antisemites in their corner,’ Prof. Bayefsky told Israel National News - Arutz Sheva.
‘Whether or not this incarnation is adopted, or another one meets with Biden's approval a few days from now, none of those elements are expected to change. The Arabs and their allies on the Council simply say ‘no’ to condemning Hamas. And the U.S. folds, just as it did with Security Council resolution 2712 on November 15, 2023. Use of the word ‘terrorism’ is an inside joke, since the UN has no definition of terrorism because Islamic states say killing Israelis doesn't count.
‘The weakness of the Biden administration at this moment is astounding. U.S. taxpayers pay the UN bills and yet are being pushed around by some of the world's worst human rights abusers and anti-Israel agents at home and abroad. We are witnessing the collapse of the moral backbone of the United States of America. Spinelessness isn't pretty,’ she said."