The US Thursday used its veto power to block a UN Security Council resolution that would have condemned Israel for its targeted killing of Palestinian militant leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.
Three countries -- Germany, Britain and Rumania -- abstained from the resolution, which was supported by 11 council members.
The US and German ambassadors, John Negroponte and Gunter Pleuger, indicated that the resolution, which was sponsored by Algeria, was unbalanced because it failed to also condemn violence by Hamas, the militant group founded by Yassin.
Yassin was slain on Monday morning outside his mosque by Israeli gunships. Israel had previously tried to kill the popular Palestinian leader, who was a quadraplegic, and once destroyed his house in a bombing run.
Negroponte said his country opposed the resolution because it was "silent about the terrorist atrocities committed by Hamas," did not reflect the realities of the conflict in the Middle East and "because it will not further the goals of peace and security in the region."
But at the same time, he said Washington was "deeply troubled" by the killing.
"Israel's action has escalated tensions in Gaza and the region, and could set back our efforts to resume progress towards peace," he said.
But he said the council would do "nothing to contribute to a peaceful settlement" by condemning one party and turning "a blind eye to everything else occurring in the region."
Pleuger said that while the German government rejects all extra-judicial slayings, such as that by Israel of Yassin, it also "felt obligated to condemn both sides," in reference to the bloody attacks by Hamas terrorists on Israeli citizens over the past three years.
The vote followed days of closed-door talks, during which the US led efforts to include a condemnation of Hamas in the resolution. Earlier in the week, the US had said it was "deeply troubled" over Israel's actions but added that Israel had a right to self-defense.
Algeria's ambassador, Abdallah Baali, said the failed vote was "not sending the right message to the world, which has unanimously condemned this crime."
On Wednesday, the Geneva-based Commission on Human Rights strongly condemned the assassination.
Thirty-one countries voted to condemn Israel while the US and Australia voted against the condemnation. Eighteen countries abstained.
END OF AN ERA: The vote brings the curtain down on 20 years of socialist rule, which began in 2005 when Evo Morales, an indigenous coca farmer, was elected president A center-right senator and a right-wing former president are to advance to a run-off for Bolivia’s presidency after the first round of elections on Sunday, marking the end of two decades of leftist rule, preliminary official results showed. Bolivian Senator Rodrigo Paz was the surprise front-runner, with 32.15 percent of the vote cast in an election dominated by a deep economic crisis, results published by the electoral commission showed. He was followed by former Bolivian president Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga in second with 26.87 percent, according to results based on 92 percent of votes cast. Millionaire businessman Samuel Doria Medina, who had been tipped
ELECTION DISTRACTION? When attention shifted away from the fight against the militants to politics, losses and setbacks in the battlefield increased, an analyst said Recent clashes in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Jubaland region are alarming experts, exposing cracks in the country’s federal system and creating an opening for militant group al-Shabaab to gain ground. Following years of conflict, Somalia is a loose federation of five semi-autonomous member states — Puntland, Jubaland, Galmudug, Hirshabelle and South West — that maintain often fractious relations with the central government in the capital, Mogadishu. However, ahead of elections next year, Somalia has sought to assert control over its member states, which security analysts said has created gaps for al-Shabaab infiltration. Last week, two Somalian soldiers were killed in clashes between pro-government forces and
Ten cheetah cubs held in captivity since birth and destined for international wildlife trade markets have been rescued in Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia. They were all in stable condition despite all of them having been undernourished and limping due to being tied in captivity for months, said Laurie Marker, founder of the Cheetah Conservation Fund, which is caring for the cubs. One eight-month-old cub was unable to walk after been tied up for six months, while a five-month-old was “very malnourished [a bag of bones], with sores all over her body and full of botfly maggots which are under the
BRUSHED OFF: An ambassador to Australia previously said that Beijing does not see a reason to apologize for its naval exercises and military maneuvers in international areas China set off alarm bells in New Zealand when it dispatched powerful warships on unprecedented missions in the South Pacific without explanation, military documents showed. Beijing has spent years expanding its reach in the southern Pacific Ocean, courting island nations with new hospitals, freshly paved roads and generous offers of climate aid. However, these diplomatic efforts have increasingly been accompanied by more overt displays of military power. Three Chinese warships sailed the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand in February, the first time such a task group had been sighted in those waters. “We have never seen vessels with this capability
RSS