Washington’s
representative said a UNSC vote to end the genocidal war and deadly aid
blockade would be ‘rewarding Hamas’s intransigence’
Hamas condemned the US decision
to veto a UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza on 4
June, labeling it a “green light” for Israel to continue its genocidal war
against the strip.
“The US veto embodies the US
administration's blind bias towards the fascist occupation government and
supports its crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip,” the Palestinian
resistance movement said in a statement on Wednesday evening.
The decision is “a green light
for the war criminal Netanyahu, wanted by the International Criminal Court, to
continue his brutal war of extermination against innocent civilians, including
children, women, and the elderly,” the statement added, stressing that it
confirms Washington's “full complicity in this ongoing crime.”
“The UN Security Council's
failure to halt the 20-month-long war of extermination, and its inability to
break the siege and deliver food to the starving civilians in the Gaza Strip,
raises fundamental questions about the role of international community institutions
and the validity of international laws and conventions,” Hamas went on to say.
The US veto marked the fifth time
Washington has blocked a vote about ending the war, coming as Israeli forces
continue to commit massacres across the strip.
The UNSC resolution was sponsored
by Algeria, Denmark, Greece, Guyana, Pakistan, Panama, the Republic of Korea,
Sierra Leone, Slovenia, and Somalia. It received 14 votes in favor, with the US
being the only one to vote against.
The draft called for “an
immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in Gaza” and a release of all
the Israeli captives still held by Hamas and other resistance groups.
It also expressed concern over
the “catastrophic humanitarian situation” caused by an Israeli blockade, which
is resulting in the spread of famine across Gaza, calling for the “immediate
and unconditional lifting of all restrictions” on the entry of humanitarian
aid.
US representative Dorothy Shea
called the resolution “unacceptable.”
“US opposition to this resolution
should come as no surprise – it is unacceptable for what it does say, it is
unacceptable for what it does not say, and it is unacceptable for the manner in
which it has been advanced. The United States has been clear. We would not
support any measure that fails to condemn Hamas and does not call for Hamas to
disarm and leave Gaza.”
“We cannot allow the Security
Council to award Hamas’s intransigence,” Shea added. “Any product that
undermines our close ally Israel’s security is a nonstarter.”
Wednesday’s veto by the US was
the fifth since Israel began its genocidal war against the Gaza Strip in
October 2023, following Operation Al-Aqsa Flood. Last June, the US abstained
from a vote, allowing a resolution to pass.
US envoy Steve Witkoff recently
put forward a new “ceasefire” proposal that gives Israel the option to resume
fighting following an exchange of captives.
Hamas did not reject the
proposal, but requested amendments that would provide guarantees for a
permanent cessation of hostilities and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
Witkoff said Hamas’s response is
“totally unacceptable and only takes us backward.”
Israel’s new operation – dubbed
Gideon’s Chariots – continues to kill dozens and displace thousands across Gaza
on a daily basis.
As part of the operation, Tel
Aviv plans to seize control of 75 percent of Gaza and displace its entire
population. Israel's plan would see Gaza's over two million population confined
to a mere 25 percent of the strip's territory.
Palestinian media
reported last month that ISIS-linked bandit chief Abu Shabab has recently set
up a fortified base in Israeli-controlled Rafah
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to a claim made
by opposition leader Avigdor Lieberman that the premier is supporting armed
gangs linked to ISIS in an effort to counter Hamas in Gaza.
A statement released by the prime minister’s office did not deny
the allegation, but said “Israel is acting to defeat Hamas in various and
diverse ways, upon the recommendation of all heads of the security
establishment.”
Speaking to Israel’s Broadcasting Corporation on 5 June, Lieberman
– who heads the Yisrael Beytenu opposition party – said “under the prime
minister’s orders, Israel is transferring weapons to criminals in Gaza who are
affiliated with ISIS, as a counterbalance to Hamas.”
“As far as I can tell, this wasn’t approved by the cabinet, and I’m
not sure the IDF chief of staff even knows about it. No one can guarantee these
weapons won’t be used against Israel,” he added.
As Hamas’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, confronts a brutal
Israeli ground operation in Gaza, the resistance group has also been fighting
against gangs of aid looters who are given free rein in the strip and operate
under the eye of Tel Aviv’s forces.
Late last month, Quds News Network (QNN) reported that Yasser Abu
Shabab, the leader of an ISIS-linked group of bandits, has “established a
fortified base in an Israeli-controlled zone in Rafah.”
His group and others like it operate under Israeli military
protection, routinely looting aid convoys, especially in areas like eastern
Rafah and Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom).
Last year, the New Arab reported that Abu Shabab, among others, was
working alongside hundreds of thieves under the protection of Israeli forces
near the Karem Abu Salem crossing, the primary entry point for aid convoys.
He comes from the Tarabin Bedouin tribe, which spans from Sinai to
southern Gaza and the Negev desert, and has been identified in an internal UN
memo as “the main influential figure behind the widespread and organized
looting” of aid convoys to Gaza. Operating from eastern Rafah, Abu Shabab leads
a group of bandits who attack trucks carrying food and other critical supplies
into Gaza.
Last year, Israeli newspaper Haaretz confirmed that these looting
operations are being permitted by the Israeli army.
In late 2024, the Hamas-run Interior Ministry in Gaza established a
new police force in the strip called the Arrow Unit, specifically to counter
these looters.
Gaza Interior Ministry and security forces working to prevent
looting have been repeatedly targeted by Israeli airstrikes.
Despite the evidence, Israel continues to accuse Hamas of diverting
the aid for itself – a claim which the UN has publicly rejected.
Israel had initially considered allowing the boat to dock, but
decided against it so as not to create a precedent of breaking the siege
against Gaza
Tel Aviv has plans to prevent the
Gaza Freedom Flotilla from reaching the besieged strip, and may even seize the
boat and detain those on board, according to Hebrew media reports.
The Israeli Broadcasting
Corporation (KAN) estimated that the boat will arrive at the coast of Gaza in
around four days.
Citing security sources, KAN said
Israel initially considered allowing the Flotilla to dock, given it did not
pose a security threat – but ultimately decided against it so as not to create
a precedent and allow for other attempts to break its blockade on Gaza.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel
Katz is expected to hold a meeting on 5 June to discuss a final decision on how
to deal with the ship and its passengers.
The humanitarian vessel is
carrying 12 pro-Palestinian activists, including renowned climate activist
Greta Thunberg and Game of Thrones star Liam Cunningham, as well as actress
Susan Sarandon – who have all been outspoken on Israel’s genocide against Palestinians
in Gaza and its brutal blockade of the strip.
According to military sources
cited by Walla news, the Israeli army has not yet made a final decision on how
to deal with the humanitarian vessel.
The sources added that Israel
plans to deploy forces in the area and relay a message warning the activists
not to enter.
“The naval commando unit
‘Shayetet 13’ and the missile boat units are preparing for the possibility of
carrying out an operation to seize the ship and arrest the participants,” the
sources went on to say.
The Madleen civilian boat,
boarded by the activists and carrying aid for Gaza, departed from Catania,
Sicily, on Sunday.
The small vessel is expected to
reach the strip by 8 June, where activists will attempt to breach the
Israeli-enforced blockade of the besieged enclave, carrying a meager but
“symbolic” amount of humanitarian aid.
According to a video statement
made by one of the activists on board, an Israeli drone has been hovering above
the vessel.
Iran's
Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, has criticized a recent US proposal, which
insists Iran give up its right to enrich uranium on Iranian soil
Russian President Vladimir Putin
has offered to play a mediating role in ongoing nuclear negotiations between
Iran and the US, according to a statement from the Kremlin. During a recent
phone call with US President Donald Trump, Putin reportedly expressed his
willingness to leverage Moscow's close ties with Tehran to facilitate a
diplomatic resolution.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov
told reporters that Russia's “close partner relations with Tehran” position it
well to contribute meaningfully to the nuclear discussions. “President Putin
said that we are ready to use this level of partnership with Tehran in order to
facilitate and contribute to the negotiations,” Peskov said.
While no timeline has been given
for Putin's potential direct involvement, Peskov indicated that communications
are ongoing through multiple diplomatic channels. “The president will be able
to get involved when necessary,” he said.
President Trump, speaking after
the call, said he believed Putin shared his view that Iran should not acquire
nuclear weapons. Iran has made clear it does not seek nuclear weapons but
pursues a nuclear program for the sake of energy independence.
Trump claimed that Putin
expressed readiness to help accelerate the talks, though he acknowledged that
Tehran was “slow walking” the process.
The diplomatic outreach comes
amid growing tension over a new US nuclear proposal. Iranian Supreme Leader Ali
Khamenei harshly criticized the offer in a speech on 4 June, calling it “100
percent against” the ideals of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The proposal
reportedly allows limited uranium enrichment and includes the idea of a
regional nuclear consortium.
“Who are you to tell us whether
we should have a nuclear program or not?” Khamenei said. “Independence means
not waiting for the green light from America and the likes of America.” He
insisted that any nuclear program without enrichment rights would be “useless.”
Despite Khamenei's public
rejection, Tehran has yet to issue a formal response to the offer. However, a
senior Iranian official told Axios that Tehran could consider the regional
consortium idea – if the operation remains within Iranian borders. “If the consortium
operates within the territory of Iran, it may warrant consideration. However,
should it be based outside the borders of the country, it is certainly doomed
to fail,” the official said.
Meanwhile, Trump publicly
reiterated on 3 June that Washington would not allow any uranium enrichment by
Iran, further hardening the US stance.
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