[ecr]

“Today, we missed another opportunity (...). This failure will have devastating consequences for the international order,” stated Bendjama, who assured that Algeria will continue its efforts at the Security Council to have a resolution imposing a ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave adopted.

“Be assured, this will not be the last time the Security Council will be compelled to work on a resolution relating to Palestine (...) We will return soon to the Council to demand an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, and this time even more firmly,” promised the representative of Algeria.

“Our efforts will not stop until the Council takes decisive measures,” he added.

The draft resolution, presented by the ten non-permanent member States of the Security Council, received 14 votes in favour, zero abstentions and one against, that of the United States which imposed its veto.

“It is a sad day for the Security Council, for the UN, and for the international community as a whole,” lamented Bendjama.

“The draft resolution this Council failed to adopt today suit only to break its defining silence, five months after the adoption of resolution 2735 (relating to a ceasefire in Gaza).

“Five months during which the Council remained hands tied, this text was far from ideal, but it represented the bare minimum that should have united us,” he estimated.

“Algeria has consistently called for enforcing the Security Council’s decisions and imposing sanctions on those who defy the collective will of the international community.”

“There were significant concessions during the negotiations and yet one member chose to block any action from the Security Council,” recalled Bendjama.

The blockage of this draft resolution is a sort of blank check for the Zionist occupier to continue its crimes in Gaza.

“Today’s message to the Israeli occupying power is clear: you may continue your genocide, you may continue your collective punishment of the Palestinian people with complete impunity,” he maintained.

“To the Palestinian people, the message is also clear: while the overwhelming majority of the world stand in solidarity with your plight, tragically, other countries remain indifferent to your suffering,” he said.

“We must ask ourselves today, as human beings, is it not enough that 44,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza? 70% of whom are women and children. How many more must perish before this Council imposes a ceasefire? he questioned.

“Is it not enough that the number of orphans in Gaza now range between 17,000 and 18,000. Many of whom have no surviving family members to care for them. Gaza, once known as the city of children, has tragically become the city of orphans,” he noted, once again wondering how many more children must be orphaned before this council takes actions.

He also drew attention to the fact that the number of journalists killed in one year in Gaza was higher than those killed simultaneously during World War II and the Vietnam War.

He also noted that the number of humanitarian workers killed during the Zionist aggression in Gaza was “the highest in history.”

While indicating that a thousand people working in the health sector had been killed in the Palestinian enclave, he questioned the silence of human rights defenders.

“Is it not enough that almost the entire population of Gaza has been forcibly displaced and face famine? With some already succumbing to hunger. How many more must starve to death before this Council responds?" he asked again.

“In the past year, the Security Council adopted four resolutions, negotiations were conducted, calls from every corner of the globe were made and yet nothing has stopped the Israeli killing machine in Gaza. The reason is painfully clear: the Israeli leaders operated with the full knowledge that they enjoy total impunity and immunity.”

“They are certain that the Security Council, tasked with maintaining international peace and security under the UN Charter, will be prevented on acting to halt the genocide,” he stated. [/ecr]