US Vetoes UN Cease-Fire Resolution; Aid System In Gaza Near Collapse -- Washington Post

Gaza StripWashington Post

Dec. 8, 2023

The United States vetoed a U.N. Security Council draft resolution Friday that called for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza. The resolution was backed by the majority of the U.N. Security Council.

Earlier Friday, Israel said that it was continuing “intense close-quarter combat” in Khan Younis in southern Gaza as well as in the north of the enclave as its military operations show no sign of letting up.

Key updates

Here's what to know

The fighting in Gaza has pushed the humanitarian system in the enclave to the brink of collapse, U.N. Secretary General António Guterres said Friday. Earlier in the week, Guterres invoked a rarely used power, Article 99, to warn the Security Council of an impending “humanitarian catastrophe.”

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Israel needed to do more to reduce civilian casualties, describing “a gap” between “the intent to protect civilians, and the actual results that we’re seeing on the ground.” An Israeli government spokesman responded Friday that Israel had put “in place measures unprecedented in the history of warfare to keep civilians safe.”

(more)

READ MORE: Washington Post