The United Nations General Assembly must activate its “Uniting for Peace” mechanism and organise an armed intervention force to end the genocide in Gaza.
This resolution 377 A (V), adopted in 1950, allows the General Assembly to step in when the Security Council fails to reach agreement.
We know a genocide is underway in Gaza and millions of concerned people are marching across the world demanding it ends.
The United Nations Human Rights Council has investigated and confirmed on September 16 that Israel is committing genocide. Its report concludes that Israeli authorities “intended to kill as many Palestinians as possible and have committed the crime against humanity of extermination”.
It cites examples of Israel officials direct targeting of civilians, including children, and mass killings in “larger numbers compared to previous conflicts”. It also found Israel deliberately blocked food, water and medicine — actions “calculated” to bring about the “destruction of Palestinians”.
Attempts by the UN Security Council to demand an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, and the release of hostages was blocked by the United States, which is one of five permanent council members which can veto.
All 14 other members of the Security Council voted in favour of the resolution, which has been put together by the council’s 10 non-permanent members: Algeria, Denmark, Greece, Guyana, Pakistan, Panama, Republic of Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia and Somalia.
It described the situation in Gaza as “catastrophic” and called on Israel to lift all restrictions on aid to the 2.1 million Palestinians.
Unfortunately, the UN Security Council is totally undemocratic: Any one of the five permanent members, the US, Russia, China, France and Britain, can block a resolution passed by the other 14 members.
This is just exactly what has happened, with the US again vetoing Security Council action to assist in ending the humanitarian disaster.
There is, however, a solution.
The UN General Assembly can act when a resolution is blocked by the UN Security Council.
Craig Mokhiber, an international human rights lawyer and former senior UN official and now fierce critic of the UN, said on September 22 that the Uniting for Peace mechanism authorises the UN General Assembly (UNGA) to act when the Security Council is blocked by the veto of one of its permanent members.
He said under this mechanism “the UNGA could mandate a UN protection force to deploy to Palestine, protect civilians, ensure humanitarian aid, preserve evidence of Israeli crimes, and assist in recovery and reconstruction.
“Legally, there are no hurdles.” He said the Uniting for Peace power has been “repeatedly affirmed” and there are precedents, most notably the UNGA’s mandating of the 1956 UN Emergency Force to the Sinai (UNEF) over the objections of Britain, France, and Israel.
Mokhiber said “Once mandated, let the protection force be deployed by air, land, and sea, accompanied by international media and supported by all diplomatic avenues to ensure its successful deployment and to press the regime and its Western backers to stand down.
“The world has a chance, belatedly, to stop a genocide and other crimes against humanity. All it needs is the will to do so.”
The Independent and Peaceful Australia (IPAN) has added its support to the idea of such a UNGA armed deployment.
IPAN spokesperson Annette Brownlie called on the federal Labor to support a multinational intervention at the UN.
She said as the Security Council “is powerless to promote peace in Gaza and put an end to the genocide” the recent failure of the council resolution “should be the trigger for the United Nations General Assembly ‘Uniting For Peace’ mechanism to be activated”.
Brownlie said Labor should “not only recognise the Palestinian state, but support such intervention and offer to supply ADF forces”.
An international petition calling for the UNGA to activate its “Uniting for Peace” mechanism is demanding the immediate deployment of a UN multinational armed protection force, with the following mandate:
• To protect civilians from further violence and displacement;
• To ensure full, safe and sustained humanitarian access to food, water, shelter, energy and medical care;
• To assist in the initial stages of reconstruction to enable families to return to their homes and rebuild with dignity; and
• To preserve and secure evidence of potential war crimes, crimes against humanity and human rights violations to enable future accountability and justice mechanisms.
[Bevan Ramsden is active in Independent and Peaceful Australia. Sign a petition to President Gustavo Petro, calling on him to submit the Uniting for Peace Gaza Protection Force proposal.]