Responding to the US veto of a UN Security Council draft resolution that would have demanded an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, the lifting of all restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid and ensuring its safe distribution, and immediate unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Agnès Callamard, said:
“For the sixth time, the United States has vetoed a UN Security Council resolution aimed at ending the unbearable suffering of over 2 million Palestinians in Gaza struggling to survive Israel’s genocide that has been cruelly unfolding, before the world’s eyes. It is morally reprehensible that instead of using its leverage to halt the endless catalogue of horrors, the USA has – yet again – abused its veto rights to effectively further greenlight Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. The results of the vote, 14 in favor and only one against, show that the USA stands alone on this issue. It is now up to the General Assembly to take decisive action.
“The implications of this veto are especially devastating for Palestinians in Gaza City, where Israel has unleashed an unprecedented campaign of annihilation that is brutally pushing hundreds of thousands of residents out of the city to unsafe and unfit areas in the south of the Gaza Strip. Israel’s relentless onslaught is accelerating the erasure of the ancient city, its heritage and Palestinian identity. That this veto comes just two days after the Independent UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) published a report concluding that Israeli authorities and forces are committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, makes it all the more reprehensible.
“From continuing to provide Israel with the massive military support that has enabled the commission and continuation of the genocide, to unconditional political and diplomatic backing, including through casting this latest veto, the US government has shown a deadly disregard for the survival of Palestinians in Gaza. This also endangers the lives of the remaining Israeli hostages, whose lives are at stake.
“History will not forgive the USA for standing alone against the international community, emboldening Israel in its ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, and further eroding a fragile global legal system meant to protect human rights, but which has seen its norms and very legitimacy crushed by pervasive impunity and contempt for international law.
“By continuing to back and arm Israel as it carries out its relentless campaign of annihilation in Gaza, the risk of US complicity in war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide is mounting. All states must exert far more pressure on Israel, including through banning, with immediate effect, the direct and indirect supply, sale or transfer to Israel of all arms and surveillance equipment as well as all trade or investment relations that contribute to, or are directly linked to Israel’s international crimes.”
