Taking over from the paralyzed Security Council, the UN General Assembly on Tuesday (December 12th) called for "an immediate humanitarian ceasefire" in Gaza, a non-binding text that nevertheless aims by its overwhelming majority to put pressure on Israel and its American ally. In this resolution, adopted by 153 votes in favour, 10 against (including Israel and the United States), and 23 abstentions out of 193 member states, the Assembly expresses concern about the "catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip". Responding to an unprecedented demand by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres who fears a "total breakdown of law and order" in the war-torn Palestinian territory, it "demands an immediate humanitarian ceasefire", calls for the protection of civilians, humanitarian access and the "immediate and unconditional" release of all hostages.
But like the previous text adopted at the end of October - which called for an "immediate, lasting and sustained humanitarian truce, leading to the cessation of hostilities" - it does not condemn Hamas. This absence has been criticised by Israel and the United States. "Why is it so hard to say unequivocally that killing babies and shooting parents in front of their children is horrific?" asked U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield. His Israeli counterpart denounced the resolution as "hypocritical". "The time has come to shift the blame to those who deserve it, the monsters of Hamas," he insisted, repeating that he believed a ceasefire would only strengthen the Islamist movement. The Americans had tabled an amendment to condemn "the abominable terrorist attacks by Hamas" on 7 October, which was rejected (84 votes in favour, 62 against, 25 abstentions), as was a similar amendment at the end of October. Another Austrian amendment that sought to specify that hostages are being held by "Hamas and other groups" was also rejected.
Why is it so hard to say unequivocally that killing babies and shooting parents in front of their children is horrific? »
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield
The special meeting of the General Assembly was demanded by Arab countries after the U.S. veto on Friday of a draft Security Council resolution calling for the same "immediate humanitarian ceasefire." Many countries and human rights organizations lamented Friday's failure, including Guterres, who described a Security Council whose authority and credibility were "compromised." It had already taken more than a month after the start of the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas to succeed in speaking with one voice, contenting itself in mid-November, after four texts were rejected, with calling for humanitarian "pauses".
More than two months after the bloody and unprecedented attack perpetrated by Hamas on Israeli soil on 7 October - which left 1,200 dead according to the authorities - Israel is stepping up its offensive in the Gaza Strip, controlled by the Palestinian movement. The UN has repeatedly warned of the catastrophic situation in Gaza, where the humanitarian system is "at breaking point" and more than 18,000 people have been killed, according to Hamas' health ministry.
The price of Hamas' defeat cannot be the continued suffering of all Palestinian civilians. »
The Prime Ministers of Australia, Canada and New Zealand
"What are we waiting for to stop these deaths and this destructive war machine?" said Egyptian Ambassador Osama Mahmoud Abdelkhalek Mahmoud on Tuesday as he presented the resolution, deploring the "efforts of a minority of countries that oppose international public opinion in favor of a ceasefire." In a thinly veiled reference to the United States, which has condemned other "aggressions", such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he denounced countries that apply a policy of "double standards". "The price of a Hamas defeat cannot be the continued suffering of all Palestinian civilians," the prime ministers of Australia, Canada and New Zealand, who voted in favour of the resolution, said in a joint statement.
This call for a ceasefire received far more votes than the resolution at the end of October (120 votes in favour, 14 against and 45 abstentions). This overwhelming majority even surpassed that of the multiple resolutions condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine (majority of 143 votes at most). But even with overwhelming support, "no one imagines that the General Assembly can persuade Israel to cease fire, just as it cannot order Putin to leave Ukraine. The goal is to make Americans more and more uncomfortable," said Richard Gowan of the International Crisis Group.