The United Nations Security Council will vote later on Monday (Jun 10) on a United States-drafted resolution backing a proposal – outlined by President Joe Biden – for a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The US finalised its text on Sunday after six days of negotiations among the 15-member council. It was not immediately clear whether veto powers Russia and China would allow the adoption of the draft.
A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by the US, France, Britain, China or Russia to pass.
Biden laid out a three-phase ceasefire plan on May 31 that he described as an Israeli initiative. Some Security Council members questioned whether Israel had accepted the plan to end the fighting in Gaza.
The draft resolution welcomes the new ceasefire proposal, “which Israel accepted, calls upon Hamas to also accept it, and urges both parties to fully implement its terms without delay and without condition”.
It also goes into detail about the proposal, and spells out that “if the negotiations take longer than six weeks for phase one, the ceasefire will still continue as long as negotiations continue”.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al Maliki told a local radio station on Monday: “Until now, there are positive signals. We hope that this proposal is accepted” while commenting on Monday’s expected UN Security Council vote.
