(UnitedHeadlines.com) – On Dec. 8, the White House vetoed a UN Security Council Gaza ceasefire resolution just hours before it announced an “emergency” provision to expedite an arms sale to Israel. The Pentagon sale of munitions to Israel included 14,000 tank shells worth approximately $106.5. The sale was completed without the approval of Congress. The shells are part of a bigger deal worth over $500 million that includes 45,000 tank shells to be used by Israel in its war against Hamas.
In a Dec. 9 statement, a U.S. State Department spokesman said that the Israeli government has been told by the Biden administration it must comply with international humanitarian law and take all measures to avoid harming civilians during the war.
The United States was the only member on the 15-member council to veto the ceasefire resolution put forward by the United Arab Emirates. Thirteen members voted in favor of the draft resolution, and Britain abstained.
The United States and Israel are both opposed to a ceasefire, which they say would benefit Hamas. Deputy US Ambassador to the UN Robert Wood said that the U.S. does not support “an unsustainable ceasefire that will only plant the seeds for the next war.”
Instead of a ceasefire, the United States supports “pauses” in the fighting, such as the seven-day pause that allowed for the release of some hostages and the humanitarian aid into Gaza. In a statement, Israel’s UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan said a ceasefire would only be possible with the return of all hostages and Hamas destroyed.
The combination of the veto and “this expedited provision” of arms for Israel should provoke contemplation if the “U.S. seeks to minimize civilian casualties,” former State Department official Josh Paul, who worked on arms sales, said. In October, Paul resigned from his role at the State Department by writing a letter against the Biden administration’s “moral compromise” and support for Israeli “apartheid.”
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