The United States on Friday voted against a United Nations Human Rights Council resolution demanding Israel be held accountable for possible war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, one day after President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the killing of aid workers and lack of humanitarian aid in Gaza were "unacceptable."
Despite the votes of opposition by the U.S. and five other nations, plus the abstention of an additional 13 nations, the measure was approved on the strength of 28 votes in favor, according to Reuters.
The resolution stressed "the need to ensure accountability for all violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law in order to end impunity," according to the outlet.
It also expressed "grave concern at reports of serious human rights violations and grave breaches of international humanitarian law, including of possible war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Occupied Palestinian Territory".
Meirav Eilon Shahar, Israel's permanent representative to the United Nations in Geneva, accused the body of having "long abandoned the Israeli people and long defended Hamas."
"According to the resolution before you today, Israel has no right to protect its people, while Hamas has every right to murder and torture innocent Israelis," she reportedly said before the vote. "A vote 'Yes' is a vote for Hamas."
The U.S. had previously indicated it would vote against the resolution because it did not include condemnation of Hamas for the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel that left approximately 1,200 people dead and sparked the ongoing war.
The U.S. did, however, say that Israel had failed to minimize civilian casualties and guarantee reliable access to humanitarian aid in Gaza.
"The United States has repeatedly urged Israel to de-conflict military operations against Hamas with humanitarian operations, in order to avoid civilian casualties and to ensure humanitarian actors can carry out their essential mission in safety," said Michèle Taylor, U.S. permanent representative to the Council.
"That has not happened and, in just six months, more humanitarians have been killed in this conflict than in any war of the modern era."
According to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry, the war has killed more than 33,000 Palestinians in Gaza.
The vote came one day after President Biden, in a phone call with Netanyahu, said that Israel's killing of aid workers and lack of humanitarian care in Gaza are "unacceptable."
Biden "made clear the need for Israel to announce and implement a series of specific, concrete, and measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering, and the safety of aid workers," a readout of the phone call released by the White House read.
"He made clear that U.S. policy with respect to Gaza will be determined by our assessment of Israel's immediate action on these steps."
Biden's stern warning came after seven World Central Kitchen aid workers in Gaza, including an American, were killed Monday in an Israeli airstrike.
The IDF on Friday called the killing a "grave mistake," dismissing two officers.
