Nigeria alongside 119 other countries on Friday voted in favour of a humanitarian ceasefire in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
This follows the failure of four draft resolutions at the UN Security Council.
At the UN General Assembly on Friday, while 120 countries voted in favour, 14 including US and Israel voted against. A total of 45 countries abstained.
The resolution was on the “protection of civilians and upholding legal and humanitarian obligations”, according to UN News. It demanded that all parties “immediately and fully comply” with obligations under international humanitarian and human rights laws, “particularly in regard to the protection of civilians and civilian objects.”
Thousands of civilians have been killed in Israel and Gaza, with the latter recording more casualties as a result of relentless bombardments from Israel.
The recent escalation started on 7 October when Hamas attacked Israel. Over 1,400 Israelis were killed in that attack. Since then, Israel has declared war on the group with occupants of the Gaza Strip at the receiving end. Over 7,000 Gaza residents including about 3,000 children have been killed in the air strikes, according to official figures.
Additionally, the resolution called for the protection of humanitarian personnel and humanitarian facilities to enable and facilitate humanitarian access for essential supplies and services to reach all civilians in need in the Gaza Strip.
Since the recent escalation, no less than 53 humanitarian staff have been killed in Gaza, UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) said.
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Referring to Israel as “the occupying Power,” the UN Assembly asked it to rescind its evacuation order. Israel had ordered Palestinians in northern Gaza to evacuate and relocate to the south but continued to bombard the area.
“The General Assembly also called for the immediate and unconditional release of all civilians being illegally held captive, demanding their safety, well-being and humane treatment in compliance with international law.
“It also reaffirmed that a “just and lasting solution” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can only be achieved by peaceful means, based on the relevant UN resolutions and in accordance with international law, and on the basis of the two-State solution,” UN News reported.
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