US non-veto a ‘moral, ethical’ lapse bolstering Hamas in truce talks, foreign minister charges

Foreign Minister Israel Katz attends a United Nations Security Council meeting about the conflict in the Middle East at UN headquarters in New York on March 11, 2024. (TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP)

Foreign Minister Israel Katz says the US decision to withhold a veto on a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza will wind up hurting Israel in talks to free its hostages held by terrorists in the enclave.

Speaking to Army Radio, Katz draws a direct line between Hamas’s rejection of Israeli terms for a truce and hostage deal in exchange for prisoners and the US decision to allow the measure to pass, which he calls “a moral and ethical mistake.”

“Hamas is building on the fact that… there will be a ceasefire without it needing to pay a thing,” he says.

Katz maintains that ties between Jerusalem and Washington remain strong, noting an upcoming meeting with Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and describing President Joe Biden’s position as the result of pressure from a “radical wing” within the Democratic party.

But he says the message that came through with the resolution, especially its Arabic language version, is that “Hamas does not need to rush” into a deal.

He says the result is that Israel will need to up military pressure to prove its commitment to releasing the hostages and taking down Hamas.

“In our view, there was a message, a no-good message, to anyone on Hamas’s side, that the US does not support Israel as much, and so we need to prove, militarily, that we will stand by our goals,” he says.