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The United States is circulating a United Nations Security Council resolution warning Israel of a “major ground offensive” in Rafah, the Gaza city near the Egyptian border where some 1.5 million people are taking refuge from conflict elsewhere in the enclave.
The move represents a rare criticism of Israel by the United States at the United Nations, reflecting President Joe Biden’s frustration with the Israeli government’s conduct of the war in Gaza and the high death toll among Palestinian civilians – and while the planned attack on Rafah becomes a potential breaking point for Washington.
The US intervention at the UN also comes as Biden faces growing pressure internationally from key US allies and domestically from influential lawmakers within the Democratic Party to convince the former Israeli Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war in favor of a more limited counterterrorism strategy. Hamas.
The use of a UN Security Council resolution to call for a change in Israel’s strategy represents a major diplomatic milestone for the United States, which usually defends Israel within the organization and recently vetoed a resolution calling for a ceasefire.
According to a draft text of the proposed US resolution, obtained by the Financial Times, the UN body would say that “under the current circumstances a major ground offensive on Rafah would result in further harm to civilians and their further displacement, including potentially in neighboring countries”. Villages”.
The draft adds that a military operation “would have serious implications for regional peace and security” and calls for it “not to proceed under the current circumstances.” News of the draft text was first reported by Bloomberg on Monday.
The United Nations Security Council is responsible for protecting international peace and security and includes 15 countries that can vote on resolutions. While 10 are rotating members, the other five, including the United States, are permanent members with veto power, giving them additional power.
Although the United States is circulating the draft to gain the widest possible support, it is unclear if and when it will be voted on by the Security Council.
According to the draft resolution, the Security Council would also support “a temporary ceasefire in Gaza as soon as possible, based on the formula of the release of all hostages” and “eliminating all obstacles to the provision of large-scale humanitarian assistance.”
Talks between the United States, Egypt and Qatar to secure a six-week pause in fighting have stalled in recent days.
The Biden administration has continued to reject calls for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, including in a separate U.N. Security Council resolution proposed by Algeria that is expected to be considered Tuesday.
Biden last week said his “expectation” was that Israel would not move forward with the Rafah offensive, but it is unclear whether Israel will heed his request.
Netanyahu said on Saturday that asking him to refrain from attacking Rafah was tantamount to telling Israel to “lose the war” and promised he would not “go under any pressure”.
Although the United States has firmly supported Israel’s right to attack Hamas in response to the deadly terrorist attacks on Israel on October 7, Biden has been troubled by the civilian death toll in Gaza resulting from the ground offensive and aerial bombardment.
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza has so far killed more than 28,000 people, according to Palestinian authorities, while more than 1.5 million people have been displaced and are in makeshift refugee camps in the south of the enclave, near Rafah.
Biden said earlier this month that he believed Israel’s actions had been “overblown.” However, the United States has been unwilling to challenge Israel by using other levers, such as withdrawing military aid.