Israel-Gaza war: UN calls for ‘humanitarian truce’
The News Freedom
Chandigarh, October 28
India has abstained in the UN General Assembly on a resolution called for an immediate humanitarian truce in the Israel-Hamas war. Calling for an immediate and sustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities, the General Assembly today demanded the unhindered provision of essential aid to civilians throughout the Gaza Strip, as the body continued its emergency session on the situation in the Middle East. The Assembly also failed to unequivocally reject and condemn the terrorist attacks by Hamas that took place in Israel starting on October 7. By a recorded vote of 121 in favour to 14 against, with 44 abstentions, the Assembly adopted the resolution titled “Protection of civilians and upholding legal and humanitarian obligations”, demanding that all parties immediately and fully comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law.
A press statement issued by the UN on Saturday said that resuming the 193-member organ’s tenth emergency special session on the “Illegal Israeli actions in occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied Palestinian Territory”, the Assembly called for immediate, full, sustained, safe and unhindered humanitarian access for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and other UN humanitarian agencies and their implementing partners. It also called for the rescinding of the order by Israel, the occupying Power, for Palestinian civilians and United Nations staff to evacuate all areas in the Gaza Strip north of the Wadi Gaza and relocate to southern Gaza.
Calling for the immediate and unconditional release of all civilians who are being illegally held captive, the Assembly also stressed the grave impact that armed conflict has had on women and children as well as on other civilians who may have specific vulnerabilities, including people with disabilities and older persons. Emphasizing the importance of preventing further destabilization and escalation of violence in the region and calling upon all parties to exercise maximum restraint, the body reaffirmed that a just solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can only be achieved by peaceful means, based on the relevant United Nations resolutions and in accordance with international law and on the basis of the two-State solution.
Prior to adopting the resolution, the Assembly failed, by a recorded vote of 88 in favour to 55 against, with 23 abstentions, to adopt the amendment titled “Protection of civilians and upholding legal and humanitarian obligations”. In addition to unequivocally rejecting and condemning the terrorist attacks by Hamas that took place in Israel starting on 7 October 2023, the rejected amendment would have also condemned the taking of hostages and would have demanded the safety, well-being and humane treatment of those hostages in compliance with international law and call for their immediate and unconditional release.
Gilad Menashe Erdan, the representative of Israel, said the world has witnessed that the United Nations “no longer holds even one ounce of legitimacy or relevance”. This Organization was founded in the wake of the Holocaust for the purpose of preventing atrocities, he said. Israel just endured the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust and according to a majority of the so-called “Family of Nations”, Israel has no right to defend itself, he said. Entire families and communities have been exterminated by genocidal Hamas jihadists, he said, adding: “We saw exactly what they dream of doing to every Israeli and Jew, and we will not sit idly by to let them rearm and commit such atrocities.” The only way to ensure this is the eradication of Hamas’ terror capabilities. Yet this resolution does not even name Hamas; even when discussing “our hostages”, the drafters could not even bring themselves to name the Hamas terrorists responsible for this blatant war crime, he said. “Why are you defending terrorists that deliberately beheaded children and abducted babies,” he asked.
“We all know that if given the chance Hamas and Hizbullah would commit the October 7 massacre again and again and again until there is not a single Israeli left to murder or a single citizen to terrorize and drive away from Israel,” he said. Hamas has embedded itself deep within and under the Gazan civilian population and the people of Gaza are being exploited as human shields for terrorists. “Why are you not holding Hamas accountable,” he asked.
Trusting information coming out of Gaza is like “trusting reports from ISIS,” he said. Every Gazan ministry is run by Hamas. Every official statistic is the word of genocidal terrorists. The fact that UN officials and some Member States still parrot lies about what happened at the hospital in Gaza City is a true disgrace, he said, adding it was proven with absolute certainty that it was a Palestinian Islamic Jihad rocket and that the number of casualties is far lower than Hamas’ reports. “Yet you continue to echo these lies. Shame on you,” he said.
Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine, said that in the world’s parliament today, peace-loving nations stood up and proved that the international community has not forsaken the promise, purpose and principles of the United Nations and has not abandoned the Palestinian people in these darkest hours. He said he was thankful to all the countries that voted for the draft resolution tabled by Jordan and co-sponsored by 46 countries.
The occupying Power has launched its ground invasion and has cut electricity, Internet and all communication, he added. Some still refuse to condemn these war crimes and crimes against humanity being perpetrated by Israel, he said, adding that today he would not focus on such regrettable stances. “We will focus on the unequivocal message this august Assembly has sent to our people that the overwhelming majority of the people of the world stand with you, stand with the people in the Gaza Strip,” he said. “They bear witness to your suffering. They feel your pain. And they have not forgotten you and will not forsake you.”