US Veto Threat Once Again Delays Security Council Vote on Gaza Ceasefire
The Biden administration veto threat is in defense of the Israeli government's desire to continue the conflict for months | The White House threatened to veto a UN Security Council resolution that would call for a ceasefire in Gaza and set up an expedited inspection mechanism for bringing aid into Gaza. The US is demanding that the resolution affirm Israel’s right to self-defense and that the part of the text calling for a ceasefire be changed. The vote was scheduled for Monday but has been delayed three times this week because of the US veto threat. According to the Associated Press, 💬 “The US is seeking to change the text’s references to a cessation of hostilities in the Israel-Hamas war and to putting the United Nations in charge of inspecting trucks to ensure they are actually carrying humanitarian goods, which Israel opposes.” National Security Council spokesman [for Israel] John Kirby said Washington has two additional issues with the resolution. “It’s important for us, if the Security Council is going to speak on this, that there’s a condemnation of Hamas and what they did on the 7th of October, there’s a recognition of the need for Israel to be able to defend itself, and there’s of course, significant commitment by all members on getting humanitarian assistance into the people of Gaza.”