UN Security Council to vote on US resolution on ceasefire in Gaza

The UN Security Council will vote this Monday (10) on a resolution drawn up by the United States supporting a proposal described by President Joe Biden for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The USA finalized the text on Sunday (9) after six days of negotiations between the 15 members of the body. It was not immediately clear whether Russia and China would allow the draft to be approved.

A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes from the US, France, UK, China or Russia — the permanent members — to be approved.

Biden presented a three-phase ceasefire plan on May 31, which he described as an Israeli initiative. Some Security Council members questioned whether Israel had accepted the plan to end fighting in Gaza.

The draft resolution welcomes the new ceasefire proposal, “which Israel has accepted, calls on Hamas to also accept it, and urges both parties to fully implement its terms without delay and without conditions.”

The text also goes into detail about the proposal and clarifies that “if negotiations take more than six weeks for the first phase, the ceasefire will continue as long as negotiations continue”.

The council demanded in March an immediate ceasefire and the unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas.

For months, negotiators from the US, Egypt and Qatar have been trying to broker a deal. Hamas says it wants a permanent end to the war in the Gaza Strip and an Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian territory, which is home to 2.3 million people.

Israel is attacking Hamas, which governs Gaza, for an October 7 attack by its members.

More than 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 were taken hostage by the armed group on that date, according to Israeli counts. More than 100 hostages are believed to remain detained in Gaza.

Israel launched an air, land and sea attack on Palestinian territory, killing more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials.