US Ambassador to the UN Criticizes Israeli Military Conduct in Gaza War

The US Ambassador to the United Nations on Monday made "unusual" remarks criticizing Israel's conduct in the Gaza war. Meanwhile, the UN General Assembly is set to vote on a draft resolution calling for an end to the occupation of Palestine this week. According to the Associated Press, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US Ambassador to the UN, accused the Israeli military during a Security Council meeting on Monday, September 16, of attacking schools, humanitarian workers, and civilians in Gaza, indicating a growing dissatisfaction from the US with its close ally as the Gaza war approaches its first anniversary. The US Ambassador further stated that many of Israel's recent attacks that resulted in injuries or deaths of UN personnel and aid workers were "preventable." Israel has repeatedly stated that its attacks target militants from the extremist group Hamas, which is recognized as a terrorist organization by the US and the EU, and often hides among civilians, using them as human shields. These attacks were in response to the October 7 attacks in southern Israel, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and marked the beginning of the war in Gaza. Many Security Council members discussed Israel's attack on an UNRWA school in Gaza last week, where 6 of the 18 casualties were employees of the UN's special relief agency for Palestinians. The Israeli military emphasized that it targeted a Hamas command and control center operating in the UNRWA school during that attack. Danny Danon, Israel's Ambassador to the UN, stated that Hamas militants were killed in that attack. He named four Hamas operatives, saying they "worked for UNRWA during the day but were active in pursuing Hamas's goals at night." Despite this, the US Ambassador stated that the Israeli military is professional and knows well how to prevent such incidents. Ms. Thomas-Greenfield added that the US expects Israeli military commanders to make "fundamental changes" in their operations to ensure they do not conflict with humanitarian activities and do not target schools and other civilian facilities. The US Ambassador urged other Security Council member states that have influence over Hamas to pressure the group's leaders to accept an agreement that would end the Gaza war without delay. On Tuesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken will arrive in Egypt for further discussions regarding a proposal the Biden administration is preparing to present to Israel and Hamas. Following the repeated failures of negotiations over the past 10 months in Doha and Cairo, mediated by the US, Qatar, and Egypt, Washington has indicated it will present a "last resort" solution. However, due to concerns over the potential failure of this effort, it has not specified when this plan will be announced. The Hamas attack on Israeli territory last October, which led to the Israeli military's entry into the Gaza war, will mark its first anniversary in about two weeks. Sigrid Kaag, the UN's senior humanitarian coordinator for Gaza, told Council members and reporters on Monday that the war has brought Gaza to the brink of collapse and that it is the "most unsafe" area in the world. Ms. Kaag expressed regret that as long as a ceasefire is not established and Israeli hostages remain in Hamas's hands in Gaza, there is no hope for improvement in the region's situation. The Hamas-affiliated health ministry in Gaza announced on Monday that 20 more Palestinians were killed in Israeli military attacks in the strip in the previous 24 hours, with 76 others injured. The report states that some victims have not been counted as they are trapped under rubble or on the streets because health and civil defense rescue teams have been unable to reach them. The death toll of the war on the Palestinian side, without distinguishing between militants and civilians, has risen to 41,226. Amid the ongoing Gaza war, the UN General Assembly will discuss and vote on a draft resolution on Tuesday, September 27, which calls for an end to the occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, deeming it illegal, and urges Israel to "immediately" end this occupation. The draft resolution calls on Israel to end its "illegal presence in the occupied Palestinian territories" within "a maximum of 12 months after the resolution's adoption." It also demands the withdrawal of Israeli forces, a halt to the construction of new settlements, the return of "seized" lands and properties, and the possibility for Palestinian refugees to return. Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian representative at the UN, expressed hope on Monday that the resolution would be adopted with a high vote due to the "extraordinary empathy and solidarity" of the member states of the General Assembly. Israel has previously stated that if such a "shameful" text proposed by the Palestinian Authority is adopted in the UN, it will lead to the "collapse" of this authority. Danny Danon, Israel's Ambassador to the UN, stated on Monday that the adoption of the resolution would mean giving "rewards to terrorism" and sending a message to the world that the brutal killing of children, the assault on women, and the abduction of innocent civilians is a valuable tactic. Mr. Danon referred to the killing of over 1,200 mostly civilian Israelis and the abduction of 251 Israeli citizens during Hamas's attack on Israeli territory on October 7 of last year. 101 of the abducted Israeli citizens are still in Hamas's custody in Gaza.