By Merve Aydogan
HAMILTON, Canada (AA) - The UN Security Council on Monday adopted a resolution that supports a Gaza cease-fire proposal announced by US President Joe Biden.
The resolution, penned by the US, received 14 votes in favor at the 15-member Security Council, with Russia abstaining.
The adopted resolution highlights the diplomatic efforts led by Egypt, the US, and Qatar, and welcomes Biden's three-phase proposal presented on May 31.
The resolution states that Israel has accepted Biden's proposal and calls on Hamas to do the same and implement it.
- Three-phase Gaza deal
On May 31, Biden said that Israel presented a three-phase deal that would end hostilities in Gaza and secure the release of hostages held in the coastal enclave. The plan includes a cease-fire, a hostage-prisoner exchange, and the reconstruction of Gaza.
As part of the resolution's outline, the first phase proposes "release of hostages including women, the elderly and the wounded, the return of the remains of some hostages who have been killed, the exchange of Palestinian prisoners, withdrawal of Israeli forces from the populated areas in Gaza, the return of Palestinian civilians to their homes and neighborhoods in all areas of Gaza, including in the north, as well as the safe and effective distribution of humanitarian assistance at scale throughout the Gaza Strip to all Palestinian civilians who need it, including housing units delivered by the international community."
The second phase includes the release of all remaining hostages in Gaza while permanently ceasing hostiles and "full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza."
As for the third phase, the resolution proposes a long-term reconstruction plan for Gaza to be initiated, with the return of the bodies of deceased hostages.
Israel has continued its brutal offensive on Gaza since a Hamas attack last Oct. 7 despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.
More than 36,700 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and over 83,500 others injured, according to local health authorities.
Eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.