The vote that was scheduled to take place today, Saturday at UN Security Council for a new draft resolution demanding an “immediate” ceasefire in Gaza adjourned to Monday, in order to make efforts to avoid another setback after the rejection of a US draft resolution on Friday, diplomatic sources told AFP.

Yesterday, Russia and China vetoed a draft resolution proposed by the US, which underlined the “need” for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza linked to negotiations for the release of hostages held by Hamas following its militants’ bloody and unprecedented attack on Israeli soil on October 7.

Some observers saw in the text a significant development in the position of Washington, which is under pressure to reduce its support for Israel.

Eight of the 10 non-permanent members of the UN Security Council (Algeria, Malta, Mozambique, Guyana, Slovenia, Sierra Leone, Switzerland, Ecuador) worked on the new draft resolution, which was expected to be voted on today.

Its latest version, obtained by AFP and supported by the Arab group of states, “calls for an immediate ceasefire for the month of Ramadan (…) leading to a permanent ceasefire”, while the Israeli attack on Gaza has claimed the lives of over 32,000 people, according to the Hamas Health Ministry.

It also calls for the “unconditional” release of the hostages held by Hamas in the Palestinian enclave and the removal of “all obstacles” to the delivery of humanitarian aid.

However, US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield warned that this text endangers, according to her, diplomatic efforts in the field to reach an agreement on a ceasefire in exchange for the release of hostages.

“In its current form, this text does not support sensitive diplomatic efforts in the region. Worse, it could give Hamas an excuse to reject the deal that is on the negotiating table, she warned yesterday.

The US has therefore requested amendments to the text, diplomatic sources told AFP overnight. And to allow negotiations to continue, which mainly concern the issue of linking the ceasefire to the release of hostages, the vote on the new plan was postponed until Monday, the sources said.

Deeply divided over the Israeli-Palestinian issue for years, the UN Security Council has been able to adopt since October 7 only two resolutions on this issue (out of the eight that had been put to a vote), mainly humanitarian. Without major results, after five-and-a-half months of war, the flow of aid to besieged Gaza remains largely insufficient, with the threat of famine looming.