On the afternoon of September 18, local time, and in the early morning of today (September 19), Beijing time, the United Nations Security Council voted on a draft resolution related to the ceasefire in Gaza proposed by the 10 non-permanent members at its 10,000 th meeting. The result is exactly the same as when the 10 non-permanent members proposed the draft resolution on Gaza in June this year: the draft resolution was not adopted due to the veto of the permanent member United States. The result of the vote was 14 votes in favor, and the United States rejected one vote. The United States has stood on the opposite side of the international community again!

The draft resolution calls for an immediate and unconditional and respected permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip; recalls the Security Council¡¯s demands for the immediate, dignified and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other organizations; calls on the Israeli government to immediately and unconditionally remove all restrictions on humanitarian aid access to the Gaza Strip, to ensure the safe and unhindered distribution of massive amounts of aid to people in need throughout the Gaza Strip in accordance with international humanitarian law, and to ensure the full restoration of all basic services.

Records show that since the outbreak of a new round of large-scale Palestinian-Israeli conflict on October 7, 2023, the Security Council has proposed draft resolutions on the Gaza conflict and put them to the vote 14 times, of which only 4 have been adopted. Among the 10 draft resolutions that were not adopted, except for 2 submitted by the United States, the remaining 8 were voted against by the United States, and 6 of them were rejected by the United States.

In an explanatory speech after the vote, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, Fujin, said that China was very disappointed with the outcome of the vote.Ambassador Fujin also sent out the "three souls questions": how many innocent lives are still to die in Gaza to a ceasefire? how many tragedies are still to happen in the end, humanitarian supplies can flow unobstructed?

Ambassador Fu Cong stressed that the efforts of the international community to safeguard fairness and justice will not stop. Next week, the 80th UN General Assembly will hold a general debate and a high-level meeting on the implementation of the "two-state solution". China hopes that relevant countries will listen to the strong voice of the international community and make correct decisions that are responsible for life and history. China will continue to work together with the international community to quell the war in Gaza, alleviate the humanitarian disaster, implement the "two-state solution" and ultimately achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue.