The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution late Tuesday demanding an immediate humanitarian cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and the release of all hostages.
The resolution passed with the support of 153 countries in the 193-member General Assembly, while 23 countries abstained and 10 voted against, including the U.S., which last week vetoed a cease-fire resolution in the Security Council.
Unlike a Security Council resolution, a General Assembly vote is not binding, but carries political weight and expresses global sentiment.
Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Gilad Erdan said ahead of the vote that a cease-fire would lead to “continued suffering.”
“A cease-fire means one thing and one thing only — ensuring the survival of Hamas, ensuring the survival of genocidal terrorists committed to the annihilation of Israel and Jews,” he said.
Palestine’s U.N. Ambassador Riyad Mansour, meanwhile, hailed the vote as “historic” and said it sent a “powerful message.”
“It is our collective duty to continue in this path until we see an end to this aggression against our people,” he added.
The resolution also called for the protection of all civilians and the free passage of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Along with the U.S. and Israel, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Austria, the Czech Republic, Guatemala, Liberia, Micronesia and Nauru also voted against it.
Among those who abstained were Germany, Italy and Ukraine. In a series of posts on X, the German Foreign Ministry explained that Berlin had not supported the resolution because the text did not mention Hamas’ “barbaric” attack on Israel on October 7.
In late October, the General Assembly passed a resolution calling for a humanitarian truce and compliance with international law by a smaller majority of 120.