Kuwait blocks US attempt to condemn Palestinian resistance at UN

Kuwait yesterday blocked a US-drafted UN Security Council statement that strongly condemned Palestinian resistance forces in the Gaza Strip.

On Tuesday, America had called for an emergency UNSC meeting to discuss rocket fire from the Gaza Strip in to Israel in response to Tel Aviv’s near daily shelling of Palestinian land.

In an email to the US mission, Kuwait said: “We cannot agree to the text put forth by your delegation especially as we are considering a draft resolution that deals with the protection of civilians in the occupied Palestinian territories and the Gaza Strip.”

Under the Trump administration, the US has continually blocked draft statements which express concern about Israel’s use of force against unarmed Palestinian protesters in the besieged Gaza Strip.

Read: Israel airstrikes target Hamas positions in Gaza

US Ambassador to the UN Nimrata “Nikki” Haley has repeatedly accused the UNSC of “anti-Israel bias” and promised to change while she is envoy.

The council is expected to vote this week on the Kuwait-drafted proposal calling for “the consideration of measures to guarantee the safety and protection of the Palestinian civilian population” in the occupied Palestinian territories and the besieged Gaza Strip, according to the draft obtained by AFP.