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The United States vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution that sought an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, showing its support for Jerusalem. The resolution, backed by France, the U.K., Russia, and China, garnered 14 votes in favor, yet was not passed due to the lone opposing vote from the U.S.
“It is inexplicable that many members of this council still refuse to acknowledge that Hamas could end this conflict tomorrow by surrendering and laying down its arms. It is unconscionable that the U.N. still has not labeled and sanctioned Hamas as a terrorist organization,” U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Dorothy Shea said.
U.S. Ambassador Dorothy Camille Shea votes in the U.N. Security Council, Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, at the United Nations headquarters. (AP/Richard Drew)
U.K. Ambassador to the U.N. Barbara Woodward defended her country’s decision to vote in favor of the resolution, saying that “the intolerable situation in Gaza needs to end.” She said that the U.K. is “determined to see an end to this war,” condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza and called on the Jewish state to ease restrictions on humanitarian aid.
Director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust Anne Bayefsky slammed the resolution and its “obscene equation between the hostages — who have been starved, tortured and executed over the past 19 months — and Palestinian prisoners convicted of heinous crimes.” However, Bayefsky argued that the resolution was not just about the U.N. attacking Israel, it’s about members of the international body taking a swipe at President Donald Trump.
“Make no mistake, this is an attack on the United States, and President Trump in particular, by the French and the British, who are attempting to use the United Nations to sideline and belittle the U.S.,” Bayefsky told Fox News Digital.
Shea also had a warning for the world body. “Engaging in this performative process at a time when serious questions are being asked about the utility of the U.N., its funding and use of resources is shameful. This council should not be used in this way. This council must hold itself to a higher standard.”
Delegates attend the UN Security Council meeting on the current North Korean military escalation in Russia and Ukraine at the United Nations Headquarters on October 30, 2024, in New York City. (John Lamparski/Getty Images)
Earlier on Wednesday, Danon issued a statement against the resolution, saying it “undermines” humanitarian aid efforts and “ignores the reality on the ground.”
“It ignores the one party still endangering civilians in Gaza: Hamas. The group that hijacks trucks and stockpiles the aid to their benefit,” Danon said. “If you care about the people of Gaza, then stop protecting those who started this war and continue to prolong it. If you care about aid, then help ensure it reaches civilians and not terrorists.”
Ultimately, Danon said that the resolution “betrays the very people it claims to protect.”
