UNSC vote on Gaza delayed due to the US resistance

Intense negotiations have delayed a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) vote on a resolution addressing the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip amid the war between Israel and Hamas. A vote is now expected to take place on Wednesday. 

The 15-member Security Council was expected to meet for a vote on a resolution sponsored by the United Arab Emirates that called for an urgent suspension of hostilities and to scale up humanitarian assistance in the strip, according to draft text provided by the UN.

The United States has opposed all recent resolutions proposed in the Security Council and General Assembly that have withheld condemning Hamas’s attack against Israel on October 07, which triggered the nearly 11-week war.

The US used its veto power in the Security Council on December 08 to kill a resolution calling for a humanitarian cease-fire, condemning the text as divorced from reality and for failing to condemn Hamas’s attack.

While resolutions passed in the General Assembly are statements for the record, Security Council resolutions are legally binding, although there’s few if any mechanisms of enforcement.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said the US was engaging constructively with colleagues on the Security Council on the text of the resolution.

“We would welcome a resolution that fully supports addressing the humanitarian needs of the people in Gaza but … the details of it very much do matter,” Miller said. 

Draft text published by the United Nations calls for an urgent suspension of hostilities, so far holding back on calling for a direct cease-fire.

Selected text made public does not yet mention Hamas, but it demands the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and condemns all acts of terrorism.

 

Israel using starvation as weapon in Gaza

A report by human rights organization, Human Rights Watch, has accused the Israeli government of committing war crimes by allegedly resorting to starvation as a method of warfare in the occupied Gaza Strip.

The organization alleges that Israeli forces are obstructing the delivery of essential resources, including water, food, and fuel, and hindering humanitarian assistance, exacerbating the already dire conditions in the region.

Since the October 07, 2023 high-ranking Israeli officials, including Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, and Energy Minister Israel Katz, have openly expressed their intent to deprive Gazan civilians of basic necessities.

Human Rights Watch claims that this policy is being implemented by Israeli forces, constituting a violation of international humanitarian law.

Omar Shakir, Director for Israel and Palestine at Human Rights Watch, stated, "For over two months, Israel has been depriving Gaza's population of food and water, a policy spurred on or endorsed by high-ranking Israeli officials and reflecting an intent to starve civilians as a method of warfare."

Human Rights Watch conducted interviews with 11 displaced Palestinians between November 24 and December 04, revealing the profound hardships faced by Gazans in securing basic necessities. One interviewee lamented, "We had no food, no electricity, no internet, nothing at all."

In southern Gaza, individuals described the scarcity of potable water, empty shops, long lines for food, and soaring prices.

The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) reported on December 06 that 9 out of 10 households in northern Gaza and 2 out of 3 households in southern Gaza had experienced at least one full day and night without food.

“Human Rights Watch ... did not condemn the attack on Israeli citizens and the massacre of October 07 and has no moral basis to talk about what’s going on in Gaza if they turn a blind eye to the suffering and the human rights of Israelis,” foreign ministry spokesman Lior Haiat told AFP.

The Israeli governmental aid organization Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories reported that 201 humanitarian aid trucks were inspected and transferred toward the Gaza Strip on December 17.

International humanitarian law, specifically the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, prohibits the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare. Deliberately depriving civilians of objects indispensable to their survival is considered a war crime.

In addition to the alleged starvation tactics, Human Rights Watch condemns Israel's ongoing blockade of Gaza, lasting for over 16 years, as collective punishment, also deemed a war crime.

As the occupying power in Gaza, Israel is obligated under the Fourth Geneva Convention to ensure the civilian population's access to food and medical supplies.

The WFP warned of the immediate possibility of starvation on November 17, emphasizing the near non-existence of food and water supplies. Subsequent reports indicated a high risk of famine and severe hunger levels in Gaza.

The Norwegian Refugee Council highlighted catastrophic water, sanitation, and hygiene needs on November 03.

The report detailed the shutdown of wastewater and desalination facilities, exacerbating the already critical water situation in Gaza.

Even before the recent hostilities, Gaza faced a severe lack of potable water, with 1.2 million of its 2.2 million people estimated to be facing acute food insecurity.

Israel's military actions, including extensive airstrikes and the destruction of vital infrastructure, have further compounded the humanitarian crisis.

The ongoing bombardment has damaged or destroyed bakeries, grain mills, agriculture, water and sanitation facilities, and road networks, making aid delivery  challenging.

Human Rights Watch calls for an immediate cessation of the alleged use of starvation as a weapon of war by the Israeli government.

The organization urges Israel to comply with international law, lift the blockade on Gaza, and ensure the delivery of essential resources, including water, electricity, medical aid, and food.

The international community is implored to respond urgently to the deepening humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, with Human Rights Watch suggesting concerned governments, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Germany, suspend military assistance and arms sales to Israel as long as alleged abuses continue with impunity.

"The Israeli government is compounding its collective punishment of Palestinian civilians and the blocking of humanitarian aid by its alleged use of starvation as a weapon of war," said Omar Shakir.

"The deepening humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza calls for an urgent and effective response from the international community."

 

Houthis: A threat to maritime or US hegemony

The United States on Tuesday launched a multinational operation to safeguard commerce in the Red Sea as attacks by Yemeni militants forced major shipping companies to reroute, fuelling concern over sustained disruptions to global trade.

Britain, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain were among nations involved in the Red Sea security operation.

The group, widely dubbed in media reports as a task force that will conduct joint patrols in the southern Red Sea and the adjacent Gulf of Aden.

According to US this is an international challenge that demands collective action and demand other countries to contribute.

This reminds the world of a hoax call of presence of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) in Iraq.

The matter of the fact is that Houthis have stepped up their Red Sea attacks, threatening to target all ships heading to Israel and warning shipping companies against dealing with Israeli ports.

As usual the ‘dishonest media’ is playing the US mantra. The reports claim that attacks have begun to take their toll on global trade, disrupting a key trade route that links Europe and North America with Asia via the Suez Canal.

The media reports say, “The crisis resulting from the war between Israel and Hamas has pit the United States and its allies against Iran and its regional Arab proxy militias”.

On Monday the US said, “Iran was behind the Houthi attacks”, but Iran denied its involvement.

The US and its allies say that the task force aims to send a strong signal to Iran and its proxies.

The Houthis say the US-led security initiative would not deter them.

Many major Arab allies of the United States have so far declined to join the task force.

Reportedly, Bahrain's defence minister met Western counterparts to discuss maritime security, but no details are available.

According to defence experts the naval ships just could not escort all the commercial vessels, at the best the ships could be positioned in areas where they offer the greatest security benefit.

According to Reuters about 12% of world shipping traffic usually transits via the Suez Canal, the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia, passing then as well into Red Sea waters off Yemen.

Normally, about 11,800 voyages are made each month through the Suez Canal - some 393 a day.

Rerouting of vessels to disrupt supply chains

Mounting attacks by Yemenis on ships in the Red Sea are disrupting maritime trade as leading global freight firms reroute around the Cape of Good Hope to avoid the Suez Canal.

The group said it launched a drone attack on a cargo vessel in the area on Monday, the latest in a series of missile and drone strikes on shipping which it says are a response to Israel's assault on the Gaza Strip.

Several major freight companies, including MSC, have begun to sail around Africa, adding costs and delays which are expected to be compounded over the coming weeks, according to industry analysts.

About 15% of world shipping traffic transits via the Suez Canal, the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia.

Combined, the companies that have diverted vessels control around half of the global container shipping market, ABN Amro analyst Albert Jan Swart told Reuters. "Avoiding the Red Sea will lead to higher cost due to longer travel time," Swart said.

Oil major BP also temporarily paused all transits through the Red Sea, a sign the crisis - which has mostly affected goods freight until now - might broaden to include energy shipments. Crude oil prices rose on those concerns on Monday.

The Houthi attacks were forcing companies to rethink their connections with Israel, with Taiwan's Evergreen Marine saying on Monday it had decided to temporarily stop accepting Israeli cargo.

"For the safety of ships and crew, Evergreen Line has decided to temporarily stop accepting Israeli cargo with immediate effect, and has instructed its container ships to suspend navigation through the Red Sea until further notice," it said in a statement.

The war between Israel and Hamas, which began on October 07, has sent shockwaves through the region and drawn in the United States and its allies on one side and Iran-backed paramilitary groups in the Middle East on the other, threatening to cause a broader conflict.

The shipping attacks have prompted the United States and its allies to discuss a task force that would protect Red Sea routes, a move that US and Israeli arch-foe Tehran has warned would be a mistake.

Rico Luman, an analyst at ING, said the diversions were adding at least a week of sailing time for container liners. Typically, shipping goods from Shanghai to Rotterdam takes around 27 days via the Suez Canal.

"This will at least lead to delays in late December, with knock-on effects in January and probably February as the next round will also be delayed," Luman said.

While freight rates will likely increase on these longer voyages too, carriers at the moment are seeking ways to utilize excess capacity, said Zvi Schreiber, CEO of global freight platform Freightos.

"It is unlikely that rates will spike to levels experienced during the pandemic," said Schreiber, referring to the economic effects of COVID-19 from 2020.

Shipping stocks rose across European exchanges in morning trading on Monday after a jump on Friday on bets the shift away from the Suez Canal could boost rates. A.P. Moller-Maersk rose 3.5% in early trade in Copenhagen, before paring some of those gains.

The Suez Canal is an important source of foreign currency for Egypt. Some 90% of world trade is transported by sea.

The International Chamber of Shipping Association said on Friday that the Houthi assault on shipping lanes, which began last month, was an "extremely serious threat to international trade" and urged naval forces in the area to do all they can to stop the attacks.

 

Biden pressurized to focus on deterring Iran

The spate of attacks from Iranian-backed groups across the region, which broke out nearly two months ago on October 17 amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, are not letting up and have spurred growing anger on Capitol Hill.

Republicans are pushing the Biden administration to project more strength against the Iranian-backed groups. 

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said on the floor Wednesday that Biden must focus on the task at hand — deterring Iran. 

These Iranian-backed groups are not deterred, they believe they can try to kill Americans with impunity, McConnell said, calling for Biden to get serious about the threats we face. 

Republican presidential candidates also called out Biden on the debate stage. Ron DeSantis, a Navy veteran said American troops are sitting ducks in the Middle East.

Nikki Haley, former UN ambassador, accused Biden of appeasing Iran.“They only respond to strength,” Haley said of Iran. “You’ve got to punch them, you’ve got to punch them hard and let them know that.” 

Since October 17, Iranian-backed groups in Iraq and Syria have attacked US bases and troops 92 times, according to the Pentagon’s latest estimate. 

The US has also engaged the Houthi rebels in Yemen several times. The Houthis, who are also backed by Iran, have shot drones at American ships and attacked merchant vessels, including the successful hijacking of one commercial boat last month.  

Those attacks are in the Red Sea, where about 10% of the world’s commerce flows through every year. 

With the attacks stacking up and stirring criticism, defense officials argue the main objective is to contain the Israel-Hamas war and prevent a wider regional conflict, with Washington taking proportional measures against Iranian-backed militias. 

The dangerous tit for tat is spurring concerns the US is playing with fire — and creating fears that a misstep could spark an even greater surge of violence. 

“We’re in a really terrible, unstable and vulnerable condition,” said Thanassis Cambanis, the director of Century International, a progressive think tank. “Even if Iran and the US don’t want a wider war, it’s easy for miscalculation to produce one.” 

The militants waging war in the Middle East against the US have been doing so for years — there were some 70 attacks on US forces between 2021 and early 2023, many by Iran-backed groups in Iraq and elsewhere.

But the breakout of the Israel-Hamas war sparked an unprecedented number of attacks in a short time frame.

Analysts say the militia groups — and Iran — want to send a message of solidarity with the Palestinian people, while they are also bristling against increased US military presence, including American aircraft carrier ships and nuclear-powered submarines in the region.

The US is struggling with two major wars in Gaza and Ukraine. With those hot conflicts stretching Washington thin, the Biden administration’s main goal is to ensure there is not a wider regional war in the Middle East. 

Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters Thursday the US is succeeding in deterring Iranian-backed militia groups.  

“That’s not to say that the challenges associated with Iranian proxies attacking US forces in Iraq and Syria or the rebels firing missiles at international shipping are not something we shouldn’t take serious,” Ryder said.

“But we will address those problems in the way that we’ve been doing. And we will continue to stay very focused on not only deterring, but also protecting our force.” 

Michael Knights, an expert in Iraq and Iran at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said the US has managed to keep the fighting at a proportional level, and while that doesn’t look good in a headline, in reality there is no real threat. 

Knights noted that no American service members have died in the recent attacks, and the militia groups appear to be designing the rocket and drone attacks to avoid fatalities

“They have a pretty limited chance of hitting Americans, and sometimes [the strikes] are quite aimed off, because large salvos haven’t even landed within the bases,” Knights said. “There’s been a lot of bangs, but they’ve all fallen into what we call the polite category, which means we’re largely looking at single drone attacks that the US can just eat for breakfast.” 

But Knights said the deterrence of the Houthis near Yemen has failed, and the US may deliberately be holding back from carrying out more destructive strikes.

One reason for the restraint could be to prevent the unraveling of peace talks in a years-long war between Houthi rebels and the Yemeni government, both of which are in a fragile cease-fire, he added. 

“The US doesn’t want to disrupt that peace process … and the Houthis are taking full advantage of that because they know right now they can do whatever they want,” Knights said. “They are the part of the deterrence puzzles where the US is doing the least well.” 

The Houthis, like Lebanon’s Hezbollah, are a prominent Iranian-backed faction and have earned their stripes in the war with Yemen’s government. That has molded them into a more formidable fighting force compared with other militia groups in Iran’s sphere. 

Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, slammed Biden for failing to stop the Houthi attacks and urged greater action against the group, including a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) designation.  

“By prioritizing politics over security, this administration emboldened the Houthis, enabling them to develop more advanced weapons, deepen ties with Iran, and further entrench their control over millions of innocent Yemenis,” McCaul said in a statement.

“It is clear that the Houthis are a threat to Yemen, our partners across the Middle East, US service members and citizens in the region, and freedom of navigation and global commerce.” 

Jason Blazakis, director of the Center on Terrorism, Extremism, and Counterterrorism at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, said the FTO designation would help the US and likely would not endanger Houthi-Yemen peace talks. 

“It would be a signal of US displeasure with Iranian action,” he said. “There needs to be a response to the Houthis because of their untoward activities. They’ve become increasingly belligerent. That can’t be ignored.” 

The US is also considering a maritime task force, which would be made up of attack ships from several countries, to defend ships against Houthi threats in the Red Sea.

Tensions are likely to remain high as long as Israel’s war to defeat Hamas rages in Gaza, with devastating consequences for civilians there. On Thursday, Israel’s defense minister said the war in Gaza could last months.  

Lawrence Wilkerson, a retired U.S. colonel who previously served under former Secretary of State Colin Powell, said Biden should bring the war in Gaza to a resolution if he wants to stop the Middle East conflict from ballooning out of control. 

 “Until we decide to essentially cut down our power a bit and let things settle,” he said, “they aren’t going to.” 

 

Iran rejects US naval task force for Red Sea

Iran’s defense minister has dismissed US plan to form a marine task force in the Red Sea with the apparent goal of defending vessels headed toward Israel.

Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani issued a severe warning to the United States in statements that were made public stressing that there is no space in the region for foreigners to move around and establish a presence.

He also expressed confidence that the United States would never do such a foolish conduct since it would generate a slew of complications.

“Americans would not definitely do such a thing. If they intend to do such a foolish act, they will face plenty of problems,” the Iranian official warned.  

Following a string of Yemeni attacks on ships that were either Israeli-owned or sailing toward the occupied Palestinian territories, the Pentagon announced last week that it was prepared to assist in the formation of a maritime task force to safeguard commerce shipping in the Red Sea. This announcement prompted the warning.

National security advisor to President Joe Biden, Jake Sullivan, stated on December 04 that such patrols or escorts could be the proper reaction to ships being targeted in the region.

The US has hinted that a number of important countries have shown interest in joining the maritime task force.

Yemen’s Ansarullah resistance movement dismissed US plans to form a maritime task force in the Red Sea, saying the group has numerous stinging pressure leverages that can be activated in the strategic body of water.

“We have stinging pressure leverages against the countries that will participate in the coalition in the Red Sea against Yemen,” said Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of Ansarullah's political bureau.

Earlier this month, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman rejected British accusations that Iran was involved in a spate of attacks targeting Israeli vessels in the Red Sea, calling the claims baseless and politically motivated. 

“These claims are raised with specific political motives and indicate the efforts of the British authorities to distort the realities of the region and their susceptibility to the preferences of third parties, including the child-killing Zionist regime,” Nasser Kanaani said.

He added that such provocative statements by London pose a threat to regional and international stability. 

“As we have stated clearly before, the resistance groups in the region do not take orders from the Islamic Republic of Iran to confront and respond to the war crimes and genocide of the Zionist regime. These groups make their own decisions based on their principles, priorities, and interests of their country and people.”

Kanaani also advised the British authorities to focus their energy on bringing an end to the Israeli war crimes in Gaza, instead of coming up with baseless accusations. 

Yemenis have declared open support for Palestine’s struggle against Israeli occupation since the regime launched a devastating war on Gaza on October 07 in response to the territory’s Palestinian resistance movements carrying out a surprise retaliatory attack against the occupying entity, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm.

 

Yemen one of the key resistance in Gaza war

When Israel began its deadly attacks on Gaza, few thought that Yemen would become one of the key players in this war. The intervention of Ansar Allah of Yemen in the recent war is subject to several considerations and analyses.

One dimension of this intervention is economic. In fact, Ansar Allah has opened the third economic front against Israel.

The first front is related to Gaza. Tel Aviv has called up 360,000 reserve forces in attacking Gaza, and tens of thousands have also left southern Israel.

On the second front, Hezbollah's movements in northern Israel have also paralyzed the economy of this region.

The economic costs on these two fronts have been high for the regime. Official sources in Israel have admitted that the country's economy has shrunk by 15% in the last three months of the year.

The tourism industry has almost stopped, and retail has also declined significantly. The unemployment rate has reached about 10%, while in the month before October, this rate was less than 4%.

Ansar Allah started their economic war against the regime in the foreign trade field by opening the third front.

They began their work less than a month ago by seizing the Galaxy Leader. They recently announced that only Israeli ships will not be targeted, insisting all commercial ships that travel from Israeli ports to another country or vice versa will be seized or attacked.

In recent days, they have attacked several container ships in the Red Sea. The attacks have led to the closure of Eilat port, and commercial ships are forced to circumnavigate the whole of Africa to reach Israeli ports without any hassle, resulting in increased travel time and therefore higher transportation costs.

These attacks have not only increased insurance cost for the ships heading to Israel, but also burdened the already under-pressure Israeli economy.

The Red Sea corridor is vital for Israel's economy, and the continuation of the current situation will become increasingly difficult and expensive for it.

"National Security Council" has issued urgent instructions to Israel’s ports to remove information related to the arrival and departure of ships from their websites.

Another solution proposed by some Zionist experts is to transport goods to Port Said in Egypt and unload them there, then transfer them to smaller ships and transport them to Israeli ports. However, this solution is not practically feasible. In fact, they know that they have no practical and military options against Ansar Allah.

However, the most important hope for Israel is to try to turn their problem into everyone's problem. They are doing their best to pretend that Yemen's actions endanger international trade security in the Red Sea and thus force others to solve their problem.

Although the Americans are involved in this project with Israel, as the revolutionary authorities of Yemen have stated, no one can prevent them from supporting the oppressed people of Palestine.

They have clearly announced the solution: stop the massacre in Gaza and deliver food, medicine, and vital goods to the besieged people. 

Ansar Allah's confrontation with Israel is not limited to economic warfare, and despite the great distance from the occupied territories, they have conducted missile and drone attacks on Israel.

The courageous actions of the Yemenis have embarrassed some Islamic countries that have many pressure tools to stop Israel's killing machine but do not use them. 

All of this is happening while the Yemenis themselves have been facing war and severe siege for more than 8 years ‑ despite all these pressures, they are stronger than ever in regional equations.

Without a doubt, making the Red Sea insecure for the economy of the Israeli regime is not the Yemenis' last card in this game. Bigger surprises may be on the way that the Yemenis will reveal in due time.

Courtesy: The Tehran Times