The United Nations Security Council has finally approved a resolution aimed at ending the Israel’s eight-month long military onslaught on Gaza. The resolution calls for Hamas to engage in a three-phase hostage-for-ceasefire proposal, an initiative spearheaded by US President Joe Biden. This marks the first comprehensive peace deal endorsed by the UN to end the Gaza war.
The UN Security Council’s resolution represents a significant diplomatic effort to end the conflict. Biden emphasised the importance of the deal on social media, stating that it offers Hamas an opportunity to prove their commitment to a ceasefire.
Hamas has expressed a willingness to engage in indirect negotiations to implement the principles of the resolution, provided they align with the demands of their people and resistance. However, Israel’s UN representative has dismissed the idea of engaging in negotiations they perceive as meaningless and potentially exploitable by Hamas. While officially accepting the peace plan, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has distanced himself from it.
Meanwhile, the US-built floating pier off Gaza’s coast, intended to ease the humanitarian crisis, has been criticised for its ineffectiveness. Salama Marouf, head of Gaza’s Government Media Office, described the pier as “useless,” noting that only 120 trucks of humanitarian aid have been delivered since its construction in mid-May. The pier, damaged by bad weather, was recently reinstalled by the US military. But aid groups argue that it cannot replace the need for open land routes, which remain blocked or severely restricted by Israel.
The pier has also been implicated in a controversial Israeli operation in the Nuseirat refugee camp, which killed more than 270 Palestinians, mostly children. The US has denied these claims.
As Israel continues the blockade of emergency aid into Gaza, Jordan is hosting an emergency international conference aimed at addressing the humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave. The conference will focus on accelerating the delivery of humanitarian assistance, strengthening the international community’s response, and ensuring sustainable aid pipelines for the safe delivery of aid and protection of civilians.
In the latest attacks, Israel has killed at least eight people, most of them children, in an attack on a residential apartment in Gaza City. Several others were injured in the strike.
Since the start of its war on Gaza, Israel has killed at least 37,124 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and wounded around 85,000.
