US proposes UN Security Council resolution backing Israel-Hamas ceasefire plan
New York, New York - The US on Monday announced a draft Security Council resolution supporting the Israel-Hamas ceasefire plan outlined by Joe Biden last week.
![US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, on behalf of the Biden administration, is urging UN Security Council members to approve a draft resolution on an Israel-Hamas ceasefire plan.](https://media.tag24.de/951x634/z/k/zk97r6pn4495h5rbs343yt15n9udnoro.jpg)
"Numerous leaders and governments, including in the region, have endorsed this plan," said US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
The draft text, seen by AFP, "welcomes the new deal announced on May 31, and calls upon Hamas to accept it fully and implement its terms without delay and without condition."
Biden outlined on Friday what he called an Israeli plan that in three phases would end the bloody conflict, free all hostages, and lead to the reconstruction of the devastated Palestinian territory without Hamas in power.
But fissures between the two allies emerged when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office stressed that the ongoing war on Gaza would continue until all of Israel's "goals are achieved," including the destruction of Hamas' military and governing capabilities.
Israeli media have questioned to what extent Biden's ceasefire speech and some crucial details were coordinated with Netanyahu's team, including how long any truce would hold and how many captives would be freed and when.
US opposes prior UN Security Council ceasefire resolutions
![President Joe Biden continues to send Israel weapons while denying that genocide is occurring in Gaza.](https://media.tag24.de/951x634/4/i/4i2lfzptgoogr8w0fdm6kbb63zn5ren1.jpg)
Earlier Monday, the White House said Biden told the emir of mediator Qatar that he saw Hamas as "the only obstacle to a complete ceasefire" in Gaza, and urged him to press the group to accept it.
Over the past eight months, Hamas has indicated willingness to negotiate a ceasefire and hostage-release deal, though Israel has remained staunchly opposed to ending its assault on Gaza.
Hamas last week said it viewed Biden's outline "positively," but has since made no official comment on the stalled negotiations, while mediators Qatar, Egypt, and the US have not announced any new talks.
Before Biden had made his Friday announcement, Algeria had last week circulated a draft resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire and a halt of the Israeli offensive on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, citing the recent order to that effect from the International Court of Justice.
Washington at the time had said that the text wouldn't be helpful, saying instead direct, on-the-ground negotiations were necessary for a truce.
No vote is scheduled for either draft resolution.
The council has struggled to pass measures calling for an end to Israeli aggression in Gaza.
After passing two resolutions centered on the need for humanitarian aid to people in Gaza, in March the council passed a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire – an appeal that had been blocked several times before by the US.
Washington, increasingly frustrated with the mounting civilian death toll, finally allowed that resolution to pass by abstaining from voting. Nevertheless, the Biden administration continues to supply Israel with weapons while denying that a genocide is happening in Gaza.
Cover photo: Mike Coppola / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP