Netanyahu thanks Biden for US influence on a UN resolution that does not call for a truce

Jerusalem/Washington, Dec 23 (EFE).- The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, thanked the President of the United States, Joe Biden, this Saturday for his country’s position in the UN Security Council, which issued a resolution to boost the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza that does not call for a ceasefire in the war against Hamas.

Netanyahu communicated with the American president and “expressed his appreciation for the United States’ position on the Security Council” of the UN, the prime minister’s office said in a statement.

“He also made it clear that Israel will continue the war until all its objectives are met,” that is, the destruction of Hamas and the rescue of all the hostages still held captive in the Strip by the Islamist group, he added.

According to a White House statement, Biden “emphasized the need to protect” Gaza’s civilian population and humanitarian workers and facilitate their departure from combat areas.

Both leaders also discussed negotiations to achieve the release of the hostages who remain kidnapped by Hamas and agreed to maintain regular consultations.

Asked by the press as he left the White House heading to the Camp David residence, where he will spend Christmas, Biden confirmed that he did not ask Netanyahu for a ceasefire during their call.

The UN Security Council approved a resolution on Friday to boost the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, after a week of intense negotiations.

The initiative, presented by the United Arab Emirates, had to be rewritten several times due to the objections of the United States, which has veto power in the organization and which finally abstained, as did Russia.

The text asks the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, to appoint a special coordinator to monitor and verify the sending of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian enclave.

Hamas, which de facto controls the Gaza Strip, considered the resolution “insufficient” for not calling for a definitive ceasefire.

“The US Administration has worked hard to empty this resolution of its essence and issue it in this weak formula, which allows the fascist occupation to complete the mission of destruction, slaughter and terrorism in the Gaza Strip, defying the will of the international community” , he added.

The United States has already twice vetoed UN resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

After the outbreak of the war between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas on October 7, the Strip – where there are already more than 20,200 dead – is experiencing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis due to the shortage of drinking water, food, medicine, electricity and fuel, in addition to the collapse of hospitals and the outbreak of epidemics in the middle of winter.

Although Israel allows the entry of trucks with humanitarian aid, it happens in dribs and drabs and in insufficient quantities for the 1.9 million displaced people – almost the entire population in the Strip – as the Israeli authorities delay in thoroughly reviewing each truck before it enters the enclave.

Israel declared war on Hamas after a brutal attack by the Islamist group on Israeli soil that left more than 1,200 dead and 250 kidnapped.

The fighting only stopped during the seven days of a truce in November brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the United States that allowed the release of 105 hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinians imprisoned in Israeli jails.