by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – The United Nations Security Council called on Hamas to accept Israel’s ceasefire offer on Monday after passing a U.S. resolution in a 14-0 vote to increase pressure on the terrorist organization.
Fourteen of the 15 council members voted in favor of the resolution, with only Russia abstaining. U.S. officials hoped that with Russia and China not vetoing the resolution, it would influence Hamas’ decision-making.
Israel opposed the resolution last week, objecting to some of the amendments made to the text.
However, the U.S. addressed one of Israel’s concerns by removing an explicit rejection of the establishment of Israeli security buffer zones in Gaza.
This move seemed to satisfy Israel, as its representative at Monday’s meeting refrained from criticizing or directly commenting on the resolution.
“Today we voted for peace,” U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the Security Council. She added that the resolution shows Hamas that the international community is united to end a war that has gone on since the October 7 massacre in Israel, which killed some 1,200 people.
“United behind a deal that will save lives and help Palestinian civilians in Gaza start to rebuild and heal. United behind a deal that will reunite hostages with their families, after eight months in captivity,” she said.
Israel Channel 12 reported on Monday that it had obtained the Israeli proposal, which includes a commitment to end the war in Gaza even before all hostages are released. Contrary to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s previous statements, the four-page document does not call for the elimination of Hamas as a governing force in Gaza, but does commit to ending the war before the release of all hostages.
However, immediately following the broadcast, Netanyahu’s office called it misleading, stating that the claim Israel had agreed to end the war before achieving its goals was “a total lie.”
The resolution passed by the United Nations Security Council was the fourth since the war began on October 7, following Hamas’s attack on Israel.
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
U.S. President Donald Trump said he had a “very good” call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, adding, “We are on the same side of every issue.” He mentioned topics like trade and Iran but gave no further details.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear a case from Maryland parents who argue that public schools are violating their religious rights by denying them the ability to opt their children out of LGBTQ-related lessons.
A branch of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the umbrella group of major denominations, has urged calm after a truck crashed into an Easter procession of pilgrims, killing at least five people and injuring numerous others.
The body of the late Pope Francis will be transferred to St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday to lie in state until his funeral on Saturday morning, the Vatican announced.
At a memorial ceremony, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed Israel’s determination to achieve all objectives in the war against Hamas and dismissed fears of internal unrest, declaring, “There will be no civil war—there will be no civil war.”
A House Republican panel is recommending criminal charges against former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, alleging the Democrat made false statements to Congress during his testimony on the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
U.S. evangelist Franklin Graham, president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and the Evangelical aid organization Samaritan’s Purse, urged Christians to pray for the Catholic Church following Pope Francis’s death.