The United Nations Security Council has adopted a resolution urging an immediate and durable Gaza ceasefire.
Fourteen of the Council”s 15 members voted late on Thursday in favor of the move, while only the United States abstained.
The resolution, presented by the United Kingdom, calls for a full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and for renewed efforts to achieve a comprehensive peace, and also states that humanitarian aid should be allowed into Gaza.
The document condemned “all violence and hostilities directed against civilians and all acts of terrorism,” the UN said on its website.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the U.S. supported the resolution, but wanted to see “the outcomes of the Egyptian mediation efforts” first.
The Israeli operation that started on December 27 has so far killed at least 758 people in Gaza, including 257 children and 56 women, while another 3,100 people were wounded, according to Palestinian reports.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Yakovenko said: “We welcome the fact that as a result of joint efforts of the Security Council and the Arab delegations a balanced and we hope an effective solution has been found.”
However, minutes after the resolution was passed, Israeli aircraft bombed a five-storey building in Beit Lahiya, in northern Gaza, killing seven Palestinians.
