United Nations General Assembly Resolution ES-10/22

UN General Assembly Resolution ES-10/22
In favour   Against   Abstentions   Absent   Non member
Date	12 December 2023
Meeting no.	10th Emergency Special Session (continuation)
Code	A/ES-10/22 (Document)
Subject	Protection of civilians and upholding legal and humanitarian obligations.
Voting summary	153 voted for 10 voted against 23 abstained
Result	Adopted

United Nations General Assembly Resolution ES-10/22 is a resolution of the tenth emergency special session of the United Nations General Assembly calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Israel–Hamas war, "immediate and unconditional" hostage release, "ensuring humanitarian access" and that "all parties comply with their obligations under international law".

Procedures and background

On 27 October 2023, the General Assembly passed resolution ES-10/21 calling for a humanitarian truce with a 121 votes for, 14 against and 44 abstentions.

ES-10/22 followed a similar motion calling for an immediate ceasefire and release of hostages in the UN Security Council (UNSC) proposed by the UAE. The resolution received 13 votes for and 1 abstention with the US vetoing it.

The resolution proposed by Egypt received an amendment by Austria, which inserted the phrase "held by Hamas and other groups," in relation to the hostages held by Hamas and other groups in Gaza, and inserting the word “immediate" when referring to ensuring that humanitarian access be maintained, which did not gain the two-thirds majority required, with 89 votes for, 61 against and 21 abstentions, so was not adopted. An amendment from the United States of America, calling for wording rejecting and condemning "heinous terrorist attacks by Hamas that took place in Israel starting 7 October 2023 and the taking of hostages" in resolution's first paragraph, garnered 84 votes for, 62 against and 25 abstentions so did not reach the two-thirds threshold to be carried.

Voting record

In favour (153) States sponsoring (marked †)	Abstaining (23)	Against (10)	Absent (7)
Afghanistan† Albania Algeria† Andorra Angola† Antigua and Barbuda† Armenia Australia Azerbaijan† Bahamas† Bahrain† Bangladesh† Barbados† Belarus† Belgium† Belize† Benin† Bhutan Bolivia† Bosnia and Herzegovina† Botswana† Brazil† Brunei† Burundi Cambodia† Canada Central African Republic† Chad† Chile† China† Colombia† Comoros† Congo† Costa Rica† Côte d'Ivoire Croatia Cuba† Cyprus Democratic Republic of the Congo Denmark Djibouti† Dominica† Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt† El Salvador† Eritrea† Estonia Ethiopia† Fiji† Finland† France Gabon Gambia† Ghana Greece Grenada† Guinea Guinea Bissau† Guyana† Honduras† Iceland† India Indonesia† Iran Iraq† Ireland† Jamaica† Japan Jordan† Kazakhstan Kenya† Kuwait† Kyrgyzstan† Laos† Latvia Lebanon† Lesotho† Libya† Liechtenstein Luxembourg† Madagascar Malaysia† Maldives† Mali Malta† Mauritania† Mauritius Mexico† Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco† Mozambique† Myanmar† Namibia† Nepal New Zealand Nicaragua† Niger Nigeria† North Korea† North Macedonia Norway† Oman† Pakistan Peru† Philippines† Poland Portugal† Qatar† Moldova Russia† Rwanda Saint Kitts and Nevis† Saint Lucia† Saint Vincent and the Grenadines† Samoa San Marino† Saudi Arabia† Senegal† Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore† Slovenia† Solomon Islands Somalia† South Africa† South Korea Spain† Sri Lanka† Sudan† Suriname† Sweden Switzerland Syria Tajikistan† Tanzania Thailand† Timor-Leste† Trinidad and Tobago† Tunisia† Tuvalu Turkey† Uganda† United Arab Emirates† Uzbekistan† Vanuatu Vietnam† Yemen† Zambia† Zimbabwe†	Argentina Bulgaria Cabo Verde Cameroon Equatorial Guinea Georgia Germany Hungary Italy Lithuania Malawi Marshall Islands Netherlands Palau Panama Romania Slovakia South Sudan Togo Tonga Ukraine United Kingdom Uruguay	Austria Czech Republic Guatemala Israel Liberia Micronesia Nauru Papua New Guinea Paraguay United States	Burkina Faso Eswatini Haiti Kiribati São Tomé and Príncipe Turkmenistan† Venezuela†
Observer States: Holy See and State of Palestine†

This is mocked voting on ES-10/21 on December 8, 2023, during the 2023 Israel-Hamas War into the ceasefire and humanitarian obligations

In favour (120)	Abstaining (38)	Against (10)	Absent (25)
Afghanistan Algeria Andorra Angola Antigua and Barbuda Armenia Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belize Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Congo Costa Rica Côte d'Ivoire Cuba Denmark Djibouti Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Eritrea Estonia Fiji Finland France Greece Guinea Guyana Honduras Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Lesotho Libya Liechtenstein Luxembourg Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Mauritania Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nepal New Zealand Niger Nigeria North Korea Oman Pakistan Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Qatar South Korea Moldova Russia Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines San Marino Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Sierra Leone Singapore Slovenia South Africa Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Switzerland Syria Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Tuvalu Turkey Uganda United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Viet Nam Yemen Zimbabwe	Albania Argentina Australia Belgium Bulgaria Cabo Verde Cameroon Croatia Cyprus Equatorial Guinea Ethiopia Georgia Germany Ghana Hungary Italy Latvia Lithuania Malawi Marshall Islands Mexico Netherlands North Macedonia Norway Panama Paraguay Romania Rwanda Slovakia South Sudan Sweden Tonga Ukraine United Kingdom Uruguay Vanuatu Zambia	Austria Canada Czechia Guatemala Israel Liberia Micronesia Nauru Papua New Guinea United States	Benin Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Central African Republic Democratic Republic of the Congo Dominica Eswatini Gabon Gambia Grenada Guinea-Bissau Haiti Jamaica Kiribati Madagascar Saint Kitts and Nevis Sao Tome and Principe Seychelles Solomon Islands Somalia Togo Turkmenistan Venezuela
Observer States: Holy See and State of Palestine

Draft amendment

[A] Voting on 89 favour, 61 against, 20 abstained and 23 absent

In favour (89)	Against (61)	Abstained (20)	Absent (23)
Albania Andorra Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Barbados Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Cabo Verde Cambodia Canada Chile Colombia Costa Rica Croatia Cyprus Czechia Denmark Ecuador Estonia Ethiopia Fiji Finland France Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Guatemala Honduras Hungary Iceland India Ireland Israel Italy Japan Kenya Latvia Liberia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malawi Malta Marshall Islands Mexico Micronesia Monaco Montenegro Myanmar Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Zealand North Macedonia Norway Palau Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Moldova Romania Rwanda Samoa San Marino Serbia Seychelles Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands South Korea South Sudan Spain Sweden Switzerland Timor-Leste Tonga Tuvalu Ukraine United Kingdom United States Uruguay	Afghanistan Algeria Bahrain Bangladesh Belarus Belize Benin Bolivia Brunei Burundi Chad China Comoros Congo Cuba Djibouti Dominica Egypt El Salvador Eritrea Gambia Guyana Indonesia Iran Iraq Jordan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lebanon Libya Malaysia Maldives Mali Mauritania Morocco Namibia Nicaragua Nigeria North Korea Oman Pakistan Qatar Russia Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saudi Arabia Senegal Somalia South Africa Sri Lanka Sudan Syria Tajikistan Tanzania Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Uganda United Arab Emirates Yemen Zimbabwe	Angola Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Bhutan Botswana Brazil Côte d'Ivoire Dominican Republic Guinea Guinea-Bissau Jamaica Laos Lesotho Mongolia Mozambique Panama Suriname Thailand Togo Vanuatu	Azerbaijan Burkina Faso Cameroon Central African Republic Democratic Republic of the Congo Equatorial Guinea Swaziland Gabon Grenada Haiti Kazakhstan Kiribati Madagascar Mauritius Niger Saint Kitts and Nevis São Tomé and Príncipe Sierra Leone Turkmenistan Uzbekistan Venezuela Viet Nam Zambia
Observer States: Holy See and State of Palestine

[B] Voting on 84 favour, 62 against, 25 abstained and 22 absent

In favour (84)	Against (62)	Abstained (25)	Absent (22)
Albania Andorra Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Barbados Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Cabo Verde Canada Chile Costa Rica Croatia Cyprus Czechia Denmark Ecuador Estonia Fiji Finland France Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Guatemala Honduras Hungary Iceland India Ireland Israel Italy Japan Kenya Latvia Liberia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malawi Malta Marshall Islands Micronesia Monaco Montenegro Myanmar Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Zealand North Macedonia Norway Palau Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Republic of Moldova Romania Samoa San Marino Serbia Seychelles Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands South Korea South Sudan Spain Sweden Switzerland Timor-Leste Tonga Tuvalu Ukraine United Kingdom United States Uruguay	Afghanistan Algeria Bahrain Bangladesh Belarus Belize Benin Bolivia Brunei Burundi Central African Republic Chad China Comoros Congo Cuba Djibouti Dominica Egypt El Salvador Eritrea Gambia Guyana Indonesia Iran Iraq Jordan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lebanon Libya Malaysia Maldives Mali Mauritania Morocco Namibia Nicaragua Nigeria North Korea Oman Pakistan Qatar Russia Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saudi Arabia Senegal Somalia South Africa Sri Lanka Sudan Syria Tajikistan Tanzania Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Uganda United Arab Emirates Yemen Zimbabwe	Angola Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Bhutan Botswana Brazil Cambodia Colombia Côte d'Ivoire Dominican Republic Ethiopia Grenada Guinea Guinea-Bissau Jamaica Laos Lesotho Mexico Mongolia Mozambique Panama Suriname Thailand Togo Vanuatu	Azerbaijan Burkina Faso Cameroon Democratic Republic of the Congo Equatorial Guinea Swaziland Gabon Haiti Kazakhstan Kiribati Madagascar Mauritius Niger Rwanda Saint Kitts and Nevis São Tomé and Príncipe Sierra Leone Turkmenistan Uzbekistan Venezuela Viet Nam Zambia
Observer States: Holy See and State of Palestine

Response

On December 13, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said that Australia supported the resolution out of concern for civilians in Gaza Strip, adding that "Australia has consistently affirmed Israel's right to defend itself...in doing so, we have said as Israel must respect international humanitarian law, civilians and civilian infrastructure, including hospitals." Reuters described this as it as "a rare split with...the United States" and noted that Canada, Australia and New Zealand released a joint statement on December 12 supporting the ceasefire. Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations, described the vote as "historic" and said the resolution demands an end to the conflict, and said "we will not rest until we see compliance of Israel with this demand." The Israeli Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan argued that the resolution was "disgraceful" attempt to restrain Israel, and claimed that "continuing Israel's operation in Gaza is the only way any hostages will be released." He also claimed that supporting the resolution gave terrorists "a free pass," declared that "a ceasefire will prolong the death and destruction in the region" and said the resolution was "hypocritical".

Mathu Joyini, South Africa's UN representative, invoked South Africa's painful experience with apartheid and said that countries need to take action "in accordance with international law" and called the resolution "an opportunity...to illustrate that the [UN]...is not tone-deaf to the suffering of the most vulnerable." Munir Akram, the Pakistani permanent representative to the U.N., denounced the amendments proposed by the US and Austria as "condemn[ing] only one side but exonerate the other" and arguing that blame "has to be placed on both parties, especially on Israel," and noted that if Hamas was named, but not Israel, it "provide[s] a justification to the Israeli war machine to continue its roulette wheel of death." Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, stated that the US saw the humanitarian situation in Gaza as "dire" and that "civilians must be protected with international humanitarian law," she urged nations to support an amendment condemning Hamas, and said that a "ceasefire...would be temporary at best, and dangerous at worst...to Israelis...and...Palestinians." Izzat Al-Rishq, member of the Hamas Political Bureau welcomed the resolution and condemned what he described as a "war of genocide and ethnic cleansing" against Palestinians.

Abdulaziz Alwasil, the Saudi ambassador to the UN, supported the resolution, saying Saudi Arabia was voting in favor to end "the suffering caused by an inhumane military attack by the Israeli occupation forces," called for an immediate ceasefire to end the conflict, and the need for "a comprehensive and just solution for the Palestinian question" aligned with the Arab Peace Initiative, the two-state solution, and establishment of "a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital." The Chinese Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Zhang Jun stated that the events in Gaza "is a tragedy, and we must do more." In a press release on December 12, Council on American–Islamic Relations National Executive Director Nihad Awad expressed support for the resolution and called on the US government to "change course" and for countries across the world to "pressure the Israeli government to end its campaign of terror in Gaza." In a statement to reporters supporting Canada's vote in favor of the resolution, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said "from the very beginning we have said that Israel has the right to defend itself. How Israel defends itself matters...What is unfolding before our eyes will only enhance the cycle of violence. This will not lead to the durable defeat of Hamas." The Canadian Ambassador to the UN, Bob Rae told CBC that the "status quo" of the fighting is not sustainable "from a humanitarian perspective" while Liberal Party parliament members Anthony Housefather and Marco Mendicino disagreed with Canada's UN vote.

See also

• United Nations General Assembly Resolution ES-10/21
• United Nations General Assembly Resolution ES-10/23
• United Nations Security Council Resolution 2712