The Biden administration on Monday called on the United Nations Security Council to vote on a US resolution calling for an immediate truce between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Nate Evans, spokesman for the US mission to the UN, said it was important for the Security Council to pressure Hamas to accept a proposal that Israel accepted.
“Israel has accepted this proposal and the Security Council has the opportunity to speak with one voice and call on Hamas to do the same,”Evans said.
It is not yet clear whether the Security Council will vote on the resolution. And even if the resolution were to be passed, it is unclear whether enforcement mechanisms exist. One of the powers of the resolution is to register with the council support for a specific action.
The US draft resolution builds on a three-phase proposal that President Biden put forward earlier this month that would require the release of some Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a six-week ceasefire. Biden called for the first phase to allow time for diplomacy to move into a second phase of a further and lasting cessation of hostilities and reaching agreements on thorny issues for Israel and Hamas.
The Biden administration emphasizes that Israel has accepted the ceasefire proposal. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has cast doubt on that commitment, warning that Israel cannot fully agree to the terms of the deal without Hamas’ commitment.
In response to this, Hamas completely rejected involvement in the ceasefire proposal, paralyzing negotiations efforts.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who arrived in Egypt on Monday, is on a two-day trip to the region to gain support for the ceasefire proposal. He will travel to Israel, Jordan and Qatar. Egypt and Qatar acted as mediators with Hamas in the midst of international negotiations for a ceasefire.
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