Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The UN Security Council has adopted a resolution on the United States (US) three-phase hostage proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, Monday. This is the first time the body has supported a comprehensive peace agreement to end the Gaza war.
Fourteen council members voted for the resolution. Only Russia abstained from the resolution.
Russia's ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, said Moscow had good reasons for abstaining from the resolution. He said the detailed proposal for the US three-phase plan had not been disclosed in detail and had many questions.
“Hamas was asked to accept this so-called agreement, but there is still no clear clarity regarding the official agreement from Israel,” said Nebenzia, quoted by TRT World, Wednesday (12/6/2024).
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ebenzia said it doubted Israel would end its massacres in the blockaded enclave. The reason is, until now, Tel Aviv has not given a signal to withdraw from its military operations in Gaza, in fact it wants to continue until Hamas is completely gone.
“Given Israel's numerous statements about prolonging the war until Hamas is completely defeated… what specifically did Israel agree to?,” he added.
However, Algeria's Ambassador to the UN, Amar Bendjama, who is the Arab representative on the council, said that although the text is not perfect, it offers a glimmer of hope for the Palestinian people, who currently continue to experience torture and murder.
“We chose this text to provide a diplomatic opportunity to reach an agreement that will end the aggression against the Palestinian people that has gone on for too long,” Bendjama added.
Previously, the US said that the peace proposal drafted by President Joe Biden had been sent to Hamas and Israel. The offer consists of three important phases, namely a ceasefire, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and the reconstruction of Gaza.
In the first phase, Biden said the ceasefire would last for six weeks. This would include a full and comprehensive ceasefire, the points of which would be the withdrawal of Israeli troops from all populated areas in Gaza, the release of a number of hostages including women and the elderly, as well as the wounded in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
Then, in the second phase, Biden said there were efforts to end hostilities permanently. However, he added, negotiations to reach the second stage could take more than six weeks because there would be differences of opinion between the two parties.
In the third phase, reconstruction will be carried out on Gaza on a large scale. The remaining hostages who were killed will also be returned to their families.
The proposal itself was welcomed by Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the PA. In its statement, Hamas said it was ready to work with mediators to implement the principles of the plan.
“Hamas welcomes what is included in the Security Council resolution affirming a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, full withdrawal, exchange of prisoners, reconstruction, return of refugees to their areas of residence, rejection of demographic changes or any reduction in the territory of the Gaza Strip, and the transfer of necessary assistance to our people in the Gaza Strip,” the militant group said in a quoted statement Reuters.
On the other hand, there has been no official comment from the Israeli side regarding this matter. However, Advisor to Minister Reut Shapir Ben Naftaly said Israel's position remained strong on the demilitarization of Hamas.
“This also means that Israel will not engage in meaningless and endless negotiations, which Hamas could exploit as a way to buy time,” he added.
[Gambas:Video CNBC]
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