UN Security Council resolution on Gaza crisis fails to address urgent needs

New York – After days of negotiations and delay, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution demanding that the parties to the conflict allow and facilitate safe and unhindered humanitarian access at scale to Palestinian civilians in Gaza. The vote was 13-0 in favor of the resolution, with the United States and Russia abstaining. 

The final resolution is a watered-down version of the original draft, containing only a vague call for steps to be taken to “create the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities”. The resolution also requests the UN secretary general to appoint a coordinator to facilitate the flow of aid into Gaza.   

Avril Benoît, executive director of MSF USA gave the following statement:     

Today’s Security Council resolution falls painfully short of what is required to address the crisis in Gaza: an immediate and sustained ceasefire. This resolution has been watered down to the point that its impact on the lives of civilians in Gaza will be nearly meaningless.   

The way Israel is prosecuting this war, with US support, is causing massive death and suffering among Palestinian civilians and is inconsistent with international norms and laws. Even war has rules. 

It’s unfathomable that in the midst of an unmitigated humanitarian disaster, where every minute counts, the UN Security Council spent days mired in disagreement over something that should have been established from the start of this crisis: ensuring the rapid flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, and safe, unhindered delivery of assistance within Gaza.