US abstained from UNSC Gaza vote because it didn’t condemn Hamas – ambassador

US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield says she had to suffice with abstaining today’s resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire and release of the hostages chiefly because it did not include a condemnation of Hamas.

She reiterates the US position that a ceasefire could be reached immediately if Hamas were to release the hostages and urges Security Council members to condemn the terror group.

Notably, she brands the resolution as “non-binding” in a hint at how the US views the weight of this resolution. Other members are calling it binding, but history has shown that Security Council resolutions are often ignored by member states.

“This resolution rightly acknowledges that, during the month of Ramadan, we must recommit to peace. Hamas can do that by accepting the deal on the table. A ceasefire can begin immediately with the release of the first hostage. And so, we must put pressure on Hamas to do just that,” Thomas-Greenfield says.

“This is the only path to securing a ceasefire and the release of hostages.”