US Vetoes UN Gaza Ceasefire; Veterans Begin 3rd Week of Hunger Strike

UN Security Council Veto

• 🇺🇸 The United States vetoed a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, with a final vote of 14 to 1.
• 🎯 The US acting ambassador stated that any resolution undermining Israel's security is a "non-starter" and that this veto supports diplomatic efforts and discourages Hamas.
• 🇵🇸 Palestinian UN Ambassador Riyad Mansour criticized the veto, expressing disappointment that minimal demands dictated by humanity, legality, and morality were not unanimously supported.

Veterans' Hunger Strike for Gaza

• 🕊️ A group of veterans and allies have entered their third week of a fast for Gaza outside the UN headquarters.
• 🎖️ Lieutenant Joy Metsler, an active duty Air Force officer seeking conscientious objector status, stated that the US military and government are not upholding justice or protecting people, which has opened her eyes to the situation in Gaza.
• 💔 Mike Ferner, former president of Veterans for Peace, shared his experiences from the Vietnam War and expressed deep emotional distress over the ongoing events in Gaza, drawing parallels to conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Calls for Action and International Law

• 🌍 Kathy Kelly, a peace activist and hunger striker, emphasized that while the situation for people in Gaza is dire, their fast is a way to encourage world attention and action.
• ⚖️ She highlighted the UN General Assembly's "Uniting for Peace" mechanism as a way to bypass a US veto, citing a historical precedent in 1956 when the US and Soviet Union used it to prevent the invasion of the Suez Canal.
• ⚛️ Kelly also pointed out that Israel is allegedly flaunting international law, including possessing nuclear weapons, and that the EU is investigating human rights violations.
• 📢 The hunger strikers are calling for the invocation of the "Uniting for Peace" resolution, the cancellation of economic and trade measures, and a complete halt to US weapon shipments to Israel.
• 🌍 Approximately 750 people worldwide are participating in the fast, with core fasers in New York and others in Australia, China, Ireland, Canada, and Mexico.
• ✅ The fast will end with a permanent, unconditional, and immediate ceasefire, facilitated aid distribution by the UN, and an end to US weapon shipments to Israel.