6 yıl önce

UN Security Council holds emergency meeting to discuss situation in Gaza

Council members called for protection of unarmed Palestinians, and for Israel to cease the use of deadly force, while the US was the only council member that defended Israel.

Reuters

The youngest Palestinian victim was an eight-month-old who died after inhaling tear gas used by Israeli forces.

The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting after up to 60 Palestinians from Gaza were killed by Israeli soldiers on Monday, in what was the bloodiest day there since 2014.

The US was alone in supporting Israel while all other council members supported the Palestinians and urged "restraint on both sides."

In a rare show of defiance, European members of the council took the argument outside‚ and standing shoulder to shoulder with the Palestinian ambassador, they issued a joint statement asking Israel to stop the use of deadly force.

A six-week campaign of border protests dubbed "The Great March of Return" has revived calls for Palestinian refugees to have the right of return to their former lands, which now lie inside Israel.

Israel came under mounting international pressure amid calls for an independent probe after its forces killed 60 Palestinians during protests along the Gaza border. The same day, the United States relocated its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a highly controversial move widely condemned by the international community.