Even during Eid al-Adha, the second of the two main festivals in Islam the other being Eid al-Fitr, the tragedy of millions of Palestinians in Gaza continues, writes Ahmad Abdel Rahman from Egypt.

While people are fleeing the bombardment and living under siege and starvation, the Israeli occupation's war on Gaza continues amid international paralysis and impotence.

Despite the condemnation of most countries about the ongoing Israeli war in Gaza, the US veto remains an obstacle to halting this aggression. Consequently, the war continues without a clear objective other than killing and destruction. European countries have even announced they will be isolating Israel after the killing of more innocent civilians, most of whom are children.

France joined Spain in proposing sanctions against the Israeli occupation, and French President Emmanuel Macron called for suspending the partnership agreement with Israel or even imposing sanctions against it. Palestine could also be recognised as a state. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni declared that Israel must immediately cease its operations in Gaza and protect civilians.

The UN draft resolution calling for a ceasefire in Israel fails

On June 4, the UN Security Council failed to adopt a draft resolution calling for an "immediate, unconditional, and permanent" ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and demanding the lifting of all restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

This failure came after the US used its veto, despite the fact that all 10 permanent and 4 non-permanent members of the Security Council voted in favour of the draft resolution. However, the US objected to it and used its veto for the fifth time since the outbreak of the Gaza war.

This failure prompted countries around the world to blame the US for missing an opportunity to stop the war and save lives. The Russian Foreign Ministry announced that another opportunity to stop the brutal bloodshed and famine in the Gaza Strip had been lost due to the US veto of the draft resolution. The Russian Foreign Ministry noted that with the US veto, "the American side effectively rejected its own plan for a deal between Israel and Hamas, which was developed in cooperation with Egyptian and Qatari mediators". US policy has many contradictions

The contradictions in the US position on the war have become clear. The US is mediating a ceasefire, while simultaneously using its veto to support the continuation of the war. Indeed, Hamas has announced that it does not reject US Middle East peace envoy Steve Witkoff's proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, but demands some changes and improvements to ensure an end to the war.

Hamas added that it is ready to enter into a new round of ceasefire talks. Hamas also said ceasefire talks in Gaza with mediators are ongoing. Khalil al-Hayya, head of the Hamas movement in Gaza said: "The movement is ready to immediately hand over the government in Gaza to any Palestinian party," noting that the US veto in the Security Council against a draft resolution to stop the war in Gaza is unacceptable.

Kazem Abu Khalaf, a spokesman for the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), also said the humanitarian suffering in Gaza is worsening, noting that Israel is shooting at anyone seeking humanitarian aid to feed their children.This is how Eid al- Adha was celebrated.

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Photo: Smoke billows from the Gazan skyline (by Adobe)

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