The United States has again vetoed a draft United Nations Security Council resolution on the Israel-Hamas war, blocking a demand for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire as it instead pushes the 15-member body to call for a temporary ceasefire linked to the release of hostages held by Hamas.
Regarding the Algerian-drafted text, 13 council members voted in favor, while Britain abstained.
It was the third such US veto since the start of the current fighting on 7 October.
"A vote in favor of this draft resolution is support to the Palestinians right to life," Algeria's UN Ambassador Amar Bendjama told the council before the vote.
"Conversely, voting against it implies an endorsement of the brutal violence and collective punishment inflicted upon them," Mr Bendjama added.
US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield signalled on Saturday that the US would veto the draft resolution over concerns it could jeopardise talks between the US, Egypt, Israel and Qatar that seek to broker a pause in the war and the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
Thomas-Greenfield told the council ahead of the vote: "Any action this council takes right now should help, not hinder these sensitive, and ongoing negotiations," Thomas-Greenfield told the council ahead of the vote.
"And we believe that the resolution on the table right now would, in fact, negatively impact those negotiations.
"Demanding an immediate, unconditional ceasefire without an agreement requiring Hamas to release the hostages will not bring about a durable peace.
Instead, it could extend the fighting between Hamas and Israel."
The Algerian-drafted resolution vetoed by the US did not link a ceasefire to the release of hostages.
It separately demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.
Draft resolution
The US has now proposed a rival draft resolution calling for a temporary ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and opposing a major ground offensive by its ally Israel in Rafah, according to the text seen by Reuters.
It said it plans to allow time for negotiations and will not rush to a vote.
Until now, Washington has been averse to the word ceasefire in any UN action on the Israel-Hamas war, but the US text echoes language that President Joe Biden said he used last week in conversations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The US draft resolution would see the Security Council "underscore its support for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza as soon as practicable, based on the formula of all hostages being released, and calls for lifting all barriers to the provision of humanitarian assistance at scale."
While the US has pressed a truce-for-hostages deal, weeks of talks involving US, Egyptian and Qatari mediators have failed to reach an agreement.
Impact
Michael Levy, of The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, said the war between Israel and Hamas cannot end without the release of hostages.
Speaking on RTÉ's Prime Time, Mr Levy whose younger brother Or Levy was taken hostage on 7 October with his wife Eynav said any offer that does not include the release of all the hostages is "not serious".
"At the end of the day 136 innocent civilians including babies are still held hostage in the tunnels of Gaza," he said.
Mr Levy said he knows that his brother is still alive but that his brother's wife was confirmed dead.
He described the devastating impact it has had on their two-year-old son who is now being cared for by his grandparents and also highlighted the worry that his family have experienced ever since 7 October.
Mr Levy said: "Honestly, I do not know what is the right move here.
"What is the best way to bring all the hostages back.
"I am here to call for the release of my little brother and the rest of the hostages."
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Egypt for talks with Egyptian officials on the situation in Gaza, Hamas said in a statement this morning.
Hamas threatened to walk away from negotiations unless more aid gets into Gaza, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected Hamas's demands as "delusional".
He vehemently opposed calls for negotiations to include recognition of a Palestinian state.
"We flat out reject this," he said in a video statement yesterday, saying it would "endanger the existence of the State of Israel."
Over the weekend, Israeli protesters attempted to block aid trucks at the Egypt-Gaza border to escalate pressure for the release of hostages.
This is the second time since 7 October that Washington has proposed a Security Council resolution on Gaza.
Russia and China vetoed its first attempt in late October.
Washington traditionally shields Israel from UN action.
But it has also abstained twice, allowing the council to adopt resolutions that aimed to boost aid to Gaza and called for extended pauses in fighting.
The war began when fighters from the Hamas militant group that runs Gaza attacked Israel on 7 October, killing 1,200 people and capturing 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
In retaliation, Israel launched a military assault on Gaza that health authorities say has killed nearly 29,000 Palestinians with thousands more bodies feared lost amid the ruins.
In December, more than three-quarters of the 193-member UN General Assembly voted to demand an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.
General Assembly resolutions are not binding but carry political weight, reflecting a global view on the war.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said that he received a response from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen following his letter expressing concern about Gaza.
He said it was not a "detailed response".
In a joint letter sent earlier this month, Mr Varadkar and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for an urgent review of whether Israel is complying with its human rights obligations under the EU-Israel trade agreement.
Tánaiste Micheál Martin said the letter was discussed at the EU foreign affairs meeting, and that the EU commission is expected to respond to it soon.
Mr Martin said that others are "quite interested in this as well and are quite supportive".
He described the scenes in Gaza as "devastating and catastrophic," adding that he wants a consensus from the UN Security Council towards an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.
Mr Martin made the comments after the UN aid and reconstruction co-ordinator for Gaza, Sigrid Kaag, told the foreign leaders that humanitarian aid could not be distributed without the help of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
"She (Ms Kaag) also made it very, very clear to the 27 ministers that humanitarian aid could not be distributed without UNRWA and that it was wishful thinking to suggest that it could and she was emphatic about that reality," he said.
"We would appreciate it if we could get a consensus on the Security Council towards an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and the release of all hostages and for Hamas to lay down its arms," he added.
