The U.N. adopted a U.S.-backed cease-fire resolution
With the U.S. seeking to put pressure on Hamas and Israel to agree to a cease-fire in Gaza, the U.N. Security Council voted to adopt a resolution, brought by the U.S., to call for an immediate truce. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in Israel yesterday for talks.
Blinken met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel. Earlier that day, he held talks in Cairo with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, whose government has helped mediate talks.
More than two weeks have passed since Israel put the deal to Hamas. But Israel’s government has not formally embraced it, and there has also been no official response from Hamas. Netanyahu, who faces pressure from far-right members of his government, has said that the assault should continue until Hamas’s military and governing capabilities are destroyed.
The U.N. vote: Fourteen of the 15 council members voted in favor, with Russia — which has veto power — abstaining. In passing the resolution, the council delivered a diplomatic victory to the U.S., which had vetoed three previous cease-fire resolutions.
What’s next: Blinken is also set to visit Qatar, another mediator between Israel and Hamas.
Israel’s hostage mission: Gazans described an intense bombardment during the raid that led to the rescue of four Israeli hostages and the deaths of scores of Palestinians. “The whole hospital became one giant emergency room,” a doctor in Gaza said.