Iran raps UNSC for failing to call for ceasefire in Gaza

Iran's Permanent Ambassador to the UN Amir Saeed Iravani made the remarks in an address to a UN General Assembly meeting on the humanitarian situation in Gaza on Monday.

He was referring to a mid-November resolution passed by the Security Council, which only called for "extended humanitarian pauses" in Gaza.

The resolution, prepared by Malta, was adopted with 12 votes in favor, while the United States, Britain, and Russia abstained. It followed repeated vetoes cast by the United States, the Israeli regime's biggest and oldest ally, against previous resolutions that called for a cessation of the regime's aggression against Gaza.

Iran's ambassador said the Security Council's resolution failed to stop Israel’s atrocities in Gaza as it lacked an executive guarantee and was not legally binding.

“There is generally an expectation that the content of the Security Council's resolution should have included the main elements of the resolution of the General Assembly that was adopted with a majority of 121 votes, especially its key point that there is a most urgent need for an immediate, sustainable and durable truce for civilians,” he said.

The General Assembly’s resolution, which was adopted in late October, called for “an immediate, durable, and sustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities" in the Gaza Strip.

“What has happened since the adoption of this resolution [by the Security Council]? Has the number of attacks on innocent people decreased? Has Gaza's population received sufficient humanitarian assistance? The answer is no. Instead, the representative of the occupying regime said in the same meeting that they would do whatever they wish,” Iravani said.

Iran's ambassador added that the Security Council's resolution “lacks an adequate provision for ending the war, which is essential for ceasing Israel's atrocities in Gaza against innocent civilians.”

Noting that “the people of Gaza expect concrete support from the United Nations,” Iravani added, “Gaza is experiencing a challenging time and the people of Gaza are facing unabated war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Israeli regime.”

“In such a dire situation, sympathy is no longer enough,” he said.

According to Gaza’s Government Media Office, the death toll from Israel’s genocidal war on the territory climbed to 13,300 on Monday, including more than 5,600 children and 3,550 women, with 31,000 people wounded so far.