U.S. Security Council veto of Gaza ceasefire demand is 'hypocritical'

The U.S. vetoed a UN Security Council demand for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, even as it kept up pressure on Israel to do more to protect Palestinian civilians during a fierce offensive against Hamas militants.

Fighting escalated and the Palestinian death toll rose on Saturday, with Israel pounding the enclave from north to south in an expanded phase of the two-month-old war against Hamas. There are reports of house-to-house fighting in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.

Decrying a "spiraling humanitarian nightmare", UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday declared that nowhere in Gaza was safe for civilians, hours before the U.S. vetoed a Security Council resolution backed by the vast majority of its members calling for a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza.

The vote left Washington diplomatically isolated on the 15-member council. Thirteen members voted in favor of the draft resolution put forward by the United Arab Emirates, while the UK abstained.

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN, said China was deeply disappointed by the U.S. decision, describing their actions as "self-contradictory" and "hypocritical."

"An immediate ceasefire is the overriding prerequisite," Zhang said. "On this issue, any negative attitude is untenable, and however much justification remains feeble. It needs to be pointed out that condoning the continuation of fighting while claiming to care about the lives and safety of the people in Gaza and the humanitarian needs there is self-contradictory. 

"Condoning the continuation of fighting while advocating prevention of spillover of the conflict is self-deceiving. Condoning the continuation of fighting while making every mention of the protection of women and girls and human rights is extremely hypocritical. All this shows once again what double standard is."

The U.S. and Israel oppose a ceasefire, saying it would benefit Hamas, which Israel has vowed to annihilate in response to the militants' deadly cross-border attack on October 7. Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the UN Robert Wood told the council: "We do not support this resolution's call for an unsustainable ceasefire that will only plant the seeds for the next war."

Washington instead supports "pauses" like the seven-day halt in fighting that saw Hamas release some hostages and the humanitarian aid flow increase. The deal broke down on December 1.

Britain's UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward told the council that "Israel needs to be able to address the threat posed by Hamas and it needs to do so in a manner that abides by international humanitarian law so that such an attack can never be carried out again."

Palestinian UN envoy Riyad Mansour told the council the vote means that "millions of Palestinian lives hang in the balance." Ezzat El-Reshiq, a member of Hamas' political bureau, condemned the U.S. veto as "inhumane."

Israel's UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan said in a statement: "A ceasefire will be possible only with the return of all the hostages and the destruction of Hamas."

In Iran, foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said: "Once again the U.S. government has demonstrated that it is the main actor in the killing of Palestinian civilians, particularly women and children, and the destruction of Gaza's vital infrastructure.”

The White House on Friday said more could be done by Israel to reduce civilian casualties and the U.S. shared international concerns about the humanitarian situation in Gaza. On Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken sharpened Washington's language, saying it was imperative that Israel took steps to safeguard Gaza's civilian population.

Describing the situation as "at a breaking point," Guterres said the collapse of Gaza's humanitarian system could result in a complete breakdown of public order. Most Gazans are now displaced, hospitals overrun and food running out.

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Residents and the Israeli military both reported intensified fighting in both northern areas, where Israel had previously said its troops had largely completed their tasks last month, and in the south where they mounted a new assault this week.

Gaza's health ministry on Friday said the death toll from Israel's campaign in Gaza had risen to 17,487. Early on Saturday it said another 71 dead and 160 injured people had arrived at Al Aqsa hospital in the past 24 hours.

More strikes were reported on Friday in Khan Younis in the south, the Nusseirat camp in the center and Gaza City in the north. On Friday evening, residents reported intensified Israeli tank fire in north Gaza, while health officials said at least 10 people were killed in an air strike on a house in Khan Younis.

Israel's military said 94 Israeli soldiers had been killed fighting in Gaza since its ground invasion of the densely populated enclave began in mid-October in retaliation for Hamas' attack in southern Israel in which militants killed 1,200 people and took more than 240 hostages.

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