Death toll in Gaza Reaches 11,500, UN Security Council Agrees to Call for Temporary Cessation of War in Gaza

Voting on a draft resolution regarding the Gaza crisis at UN DK. (Source: UN News)

JAKARTA - The UN Security Council on Wednesday approved a resolution calling for a humanitarian pause in fighting in the Gaza Strip, to allow access for aid, as the death toll from the Hamas-Israel conflict in the region continues to rise.

The resolution proposed by Malta also calls for the release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups, especially children and ensuring humanitarian access to the region.

Malta's Ambassador to the UN Vanessa Frazier said the current crisis was accompanied by an increasing number of deaths, the lives of newborn babies being threatened, and more than a million people being displaced, more than half of whom were children.

"The draft resolution calls for a humanitarian pause and the release of hostages held by Hamas and other groups," said Ambassador Frazier, according to the UN website, November 16.

"Our vote today means real human lives," he continued, urging Council members to vote in favor.

As a result, Albania, Brazil, China, Ecuador, France, Gabon, Ghana, Japan, Malta, Mozambique, Switzerland and the UAE supported this resolution. Meanwhile, the United States, Britain and Russia abstained.

BREAKING: UN Security Council adopts resolution proposed by Malta on the Israel-Palestine crisis:

In favor (12)

Against (0)

Abstentions (3) - Russia, UK, US pic.twitter.com/2dgoPidrXF

— UN News (@UN_News_Centre) November 15, 2023

It is known that this is the fifth attempt by the UN Security Council to produce a resolution regarding the crisis in Gaza. Four previous proposed resolutions failed, either due to the lack of a majority vote or the use of veto rights by permanent members of the UN Security Council.

The four proposals that failed previously came from Brazil, Russia (twice) and the United States. The focus of difference in the draft resolution is the choice of a ceasefire or humanitarian pause.

It is known that the voting mechanism for UNSC resolutions requires a minimum of nine votes in favor, from a total of 15 members of the council, without a veto from any of the permanent members of the council, namely the United States, China, Britain, France and Russia. This month, Brazil served as President of the UNSC.

Separately, the government media office in Gaza announced on Wednesday that the death toll from Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip had risen to 11,500, including 4,710 children and 3,160 women.

"The number of deaths among medical personnel has reached 200," the office said in a statement on Telegram, quoted by Anadolu.

Meanwhile, the number of injured people reached 29,800 people, and around 70% of them were children and women.

Wednesday's statement also said 95 government buildings and 255 schools had been destroyed. A total of 74 mosques were completely destroyed and 162 partially damaged, as well as three churches.

Meanwhile, the death toll in Israel reached 1,200 people, according to official figures.