NEW YORK(Palestine Foundation Information Center)The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. 153 member states voted in favor of the ceasefire resolution, while 10 countries opposed it and 23 abstained.
The UN Security Council had failed, for the second time this month, to pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, after the United States exercised its veto power, despite the warning from UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that there is no effective protection for civilians in Gaza and that there is no safe place in the region.
The latest version of the resolution calls for an “immediate cessation of hostilities for humanitarian reasons”, warning of the “catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.” The concise text also calls for the “protection of civilians,” the “immediate and unconditional release of all hostages,” and “ensuring the delivery of humanitarian aid.”
Meanwhile, in a joint statement on Tuesday, the prime ministers of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand expressed their support for urgent international efforts to achieve a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. They stated in their statement, “We are concerned about the shrinking safe space for civilians in Gaza. The ongoing suffering of all Palestinian civilians cannot be the price of Hamas’s defeat.”
They added that a ceasefire cannot be one-sided and called on Hamas to “release all hostages and cease using Palestinian civilians as human shields,” according to the statement. They emphasized that “the ceasefire in Gaza must not be unilateral,” and expressed their opposition to any reoccupation of the Gaza Strip or reduction of its territory.
The statement also stated, “We oppose the forced displacement of Palestinians and support their right to self-determination.”
Meanwhile, the Chinese representative at the United Nations affirmed that “what is happening in Gaza is a tragedy, and we must do more.”
On Monday, the British Parliament discussed proposals and demands regarding the United Kingdom’s stance on the Israeli occupation’s aggression against the Gaza Strip. This took place during a session of the parliamentary committee to consider three popular petitions on this matter.
The first petition calls for maintaining neutrality and withdrawing support for Israel, while the second urges the Israeli government to allow fuel, electricity, and food into the Gaza Strip. The third petition calls for adopting a ceasefire and ending the occupation in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
According to the British constitution, Parliament is required to discuss petitions that exceed 100,000 signatures through a subcommittee in Parliament. However, these discussions are not binding on the government, which is committed to legislative sessions of Parliament that include 650 members of parliament.
