China harshly criticized the United States for vetoing a United Nations Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
The Chinese government said the move sent the “wrong message” and effectively gave a “green light for further genocide”.
The White House said Algeria’s proposed resolution would “endanger” negotiations to end the war.
The United States proposed its own temporary ceasefire resolution and warned Israel against entering the city of Rafah.
The US decision to block the Algeria resolution was widely condemned as fighting continued in Gaza.
It was supported by 13 of the 15 members of the UN Security Council, but the UK abstained.
Reacting to the veto, China’s Ambassador to the United Nations Zhang Jun said that claims that the motion would affect ongoing diplomatic negotiations were “totally baseless.”
“Given the situation on the ground, continuing to passively avoid an immediate ceasefire is nothing more than giving the green light to further massacres,” he said.
“The escalation of conflicts is destabilizing the entire Middle East region and leading to an increased risk of major war,” he added.
“Only by putting out the flames of war in Gaza can we prevent the hellfire from consuming the entire region.” Algeria’s top UN diplomat said:
“Unfortunately, the Security Council has failed again.” ” he said. “Examine your conscience. How will history judge you?” Amar Bendjama added.
US allies also voiced criticism of the move.
France’s UN special envoy Nicolas de Rivière expressed regret that the resolution had not been adopted “given the catastrophic situation on the ground”.
U.N. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield in Washington said while negotiations between Hamas and Israel are still ongoing, it is not the time to call for an immediate ceasefire.
British Prime Minister Barbara Woodward said the plan jeopardized negotiations and “could actually make a ceasefire less likely”.
Israel launched an operation in Gaza after Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking more than 240 hostages.
More than 29,000 people have been killed in Israeli military operations in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Authority’s Hamas-led Health Ministry.
The draft resolution proposed by the United States calls for a temporary ceasefire “as soon as possible” conditioned on the release of all hostages and the removal of barriers to the delivery of aid to Gaza.
The White House has so far avoided the word “ceasefire” in the U.N. vote on the war, but it is unclear if and when the Security Council will vote on the proposal.
He also said that a large-scale ground attack in Rafah would lead to further damage to civilians and possibly further displacement to neighbouring countries, a reference to Egypt.
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that he was “committed to continuing the war until all objectives are achieved” and that no amount of pressure could change that.