Ambassadors to the UN applauding as the UN Security Council Resolution is passed. (Credit: Angela Weiss, AFP)
Today is a bleak day in Israel's campaign to root out terror in Gaza. The United States refused to veto a UN Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire for the remainder of the month of Ramadan. While the resolution did call for the release of the hostages, it did not make it a prerequisite to the ceasefire. The resolution also did not condemn Hamas as a terrorist group, instead painting the war as some sort of conflict between two completely equal and legitimate entities.
Aside from the issues inherent in a ceasefire in general, and the fact that it doesn't condemn Hamas, the most ironic part about the resolution is it calling for a ceasefire specifically for Ramadan. The UN Security Council apparently feels bad for the Hamas terrorists that have to fight during their holy month, and expects Israel to yield for that reason.
Well, Hamas doesn't care about Jewish holidays. Hamas didn't care about the fact that October 7th coincided with the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah and Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath. They didn't care about it when they murdered countless Israelis civilians. They didn't care about it when they raped hundreds of Israeli women. They didn't care about it when they kidnapped 247 Israeli civilians. They didn't care about it when they burned infants alive in their own ovens. Yet Israel is meant to feel sympathetic towards Hamas having to fight during Ramadan.
The day on which this resolution has been passed is also especially ironic. Yesterday was the holiday of Purim, celebrating the events of the Book of Esther, in which an attempted genocide against the Jewish people in ancient Persia was thwarted, and those that attempted to kill the Jews were killed in self defense. Today, the day after, is Shushan Purim, the day on which Purim is celebrated in certain cities in Israel, including Jerusalem, Israel's capital.
On this holiday, in which the Jewish people celebrate a historic military victory and triumph against their enemies, they are told that they cannot defend themselves against their modern-day haters. Israel must yield for Hamas to observe Ramadan, while the meaning of their own holiday, Purim, is whittled away.