UN Security Council adopts a cease-fire resolution aimed at ending Israel-Hamas war in Gaza

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council on Monday approved its first resolution endorsing a cease-fire plan aimed at ending the eight-month war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

The U.S.-sponsored resolution welcomes a cease-fire proposal announced by President Joe Biden that the United States says Israel has accepted. It calls on the militant Palestinian group Hamas, which initially said it viewed the proposal “positively,” to accept the three-phase plan.

It urges Israel and Hamas “to fully implement its terms without delay and without condition.”

The resolution — which was approved overwhelmingly with 14 of the 15 Security Council members voting in favor and Russia abstaining — also calls on Israel and Hamas “to fully implement its terms without delay and without condition.”

U.S. Ambassdador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said after the vote that the council “sent a clear message to Hamas to accept the cease-fire deal on the table,” reiterating that Israel has accepted the deal which is supported by countries across the world.

“The fighting could stop today, if Hamas would do the same,” she told the council. “I repeat, this fighting could stop today.”

U.S. deputy ambassador Robert Wood told reporters earlier on Monday that the United States wanted all 15 Security Council members to support what he described as “the best, most realistic opportunity to bring at least a temporary halt to this war.”

Whether Israel and Hamas agree to the three-phase cease-fire plan remains in question, but the resolution’s strong support in the U.N.’s most powerful body puts added pressure on both parties to approve the proposal.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Biden presented only parts of the proposal and...