The resolution drafted by Arab countries was approved by 120 votes to 14, with 45 abstentions in the UN General Assembly.
The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian truce between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
The 193-member Council approved the resolution drafted by a group of 22 Arab countries, by a margin of 120 votes to 14, with 45 countries abstaining from voting. The United States and Israel voted no.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said, before the vote, that voting against the resolution “means approval of this foolish war and this senseless killing.” Israel denounced the vote, calling it a “disgrace.”
The resolution is non-binding, but serves as a measure of global public opinion as the fighting between Israel and Hamas approaches the end of its third week, following an attack launched by Hamas on southern Israel that killed more than 1,400 people.
The commission was held at a time when Israel intensified its bombing of Gaza, where telephone and Internet services were cut off, and Israel participated in limited ground skirmishes before the expected invasion.
The General Assembly voted after the UN Security Council failed to act for two weeks, with the United States and Russia using veto power to block proposals backed by the other.
The adopted resolution calls for “an immediate, permanent and sustainable humanitarian truce leading to the cessation of hostilities” and “strongly rejects any attempts to forcibly transfer the Palestinian civilian population.”
The resolution also stresses the need to avoid a broader escalation of fighting and calls for an increase in humanitarian aid to Gaza, where only a small number of trucks carrying aid were allowed to enter over the past week.
Canada’s amendment to the resolution, which would have added condemnation of the Hamas attack, did not receive the necessary two-thirds majority.
The resolution calls for the immediate release of all civilians held hostage and condemns “all acts of terrorism and indiscriminate attacks,” including those targeting Israeli civilians, but does not specifically mention Hamas.
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, said that “a ceasefire means giving Hamas time to rearm itself,” and that the vote was not aimed at bringing peace but rather “to tie Israel’s hands.”
Speaking on Thursday, Erdan said: “The only place this decision belongs is in the dustbin of history.”
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