UN Secretary-General Stéphane Dujarric's spokesman on Wednesday regretted that the UN Security Council had not adopted a resolution on a ceasefire in Gaza, after the United States blocked the draft document by using its veto power.
"This is another example of the regrettable lack of consensus that we see in the Security Council among member states and, frankly, the lack of implementation of previous resolutions on Gaza," Dujarric said during a briefing.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Gutierrez will continue to support all efforts to see an end to the conflict in Gaza, achieve the unconditional release of all hostages and implement the two-state solution, Dujarric added.
The draft, vetoed by the US, was put forward by the group of 10 non-permanent elected members of the Council, known as the E10.
The document demanded an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire and called for the immediate and unconditional release of all Israeli hostages held by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
The draft text rejected "any attempt to starve Palestinians" and demanded immediate access to humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza.
The United States cannot accept an "unconditional" ceasefire in Gaza, US Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood said at a meeting of the UN Security Council, without providing any justification other than its blind support for Israel.
