Geneva, Switzerland - The UN Human Rights Council on Friday demanded a halt in all arms sales to Israel, in an unprecedented move highlighting warnings of genocide in its war on Palestinians in Gaza.

The resolution – which passed with 28 of the council's 47 member states voting in favor, six opposed, and 13 abstaining – marked the first time the UN top rights body has taken a position on the bloodiest-ever assault to be suffered by the Palestinian territory.

The strongly worded text called on countries to "cease the sale, transfer and diversion of arms, munitions and other military equipment to Israel... to prevent further violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights".

It stressed that the International Court of Justice ruled in January "that there is a plausible risk of genocide" in Gaza.

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Friday's resolution, which was brought forward by Pakistan on behalf of all Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member states except Albania, also called for "an immediate ceasefire" and "for immediate emergency humanitarian access and assistance."

"We need you all to wake up and stop this genocide, a genocide televised around the world," Palestinian ambassador Ibrahim Mohammad Khraishi told the council before the vote.

Meirav Eilon Shahar, Israel's ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told council members that "a vote yes is a vote for Hamas" and slammed the resolution as "a stain for the Human Rights Council and for the UN as a whole".

The US, along with Germany, Argentina, Bulgaria, Malawi and Paraguay, voted no.

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Ambassador Michele Taylor agreed that "far too many civilians have been killed in this conflict and that every civilian death is a tragedy", acknowledging that "Israel has not done enough to mitigate civilian harm".

But she said Washington could not support the text, which she said contained "many problematic elements", including its failure to specifically condemn Hamas and its October 7 attacks.

The US is by far and away Israel's biggest arms supplier, and even as President Joe Biden's administration has declared itself outraged by Israeli atrocities, it has continued to supply billions of dollars worth of weaponry that is used on Palestinians.

While the rights council resolution did not name Hamas, it did condemn the firing of rockets at Israeli civilian areas and demanded "the immediate release of all remaining hostages".

The text demanded that Israel end its illegal occupation of all Palestinian territories and "immediately lift its blockade on the Gaza Strip and all other forms of collective punishment".

It also expressed "grave concern at statements by Israeli officials amounting to incitement to genocide," urging countries to "prevent the continued forcible transfer of Palestinians within and from Gaza".

The council warned in particular "against any large-scale military operations in the city of Rafah," where well over one million civilians are sheltering, warning of "devastating humanitarian consequences".

The resolution also condemned "the use of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare in Gaza", where the UN has warned that famine is looming.

The text insisted on the "imperative of credible, timely and comprehensive accountability for all violations of international law" in Gaza.

It called on UN war crimes investigators to look into all "direct and indirect transfer or sale of arms, munitions, parts, components and dual use items to Israel" and "analyze the legal consequences of these transfers".

One such legal consequence may play in out in the US, as Palestinians and Palestinian-Americans, backed by human and civil rights organizations, take their case against the Biden administration's support for Israel to federal court.