On Friday, India abstained from voting on a United Nations General Assembly resolution that called for an “immediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce” between Israel and Hamas.
This came as Israel doubled down on its brutal bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip, severing all communication links in the occupied enclave and initiating limited ground operations.
The resolution was, however, adopted with 120 votes in favour, 14 against and 45 abstentions.
Notably, this was a non-binding resolution, as all United Nations General Assembly resolutions are.
This means that the state parties, including Israel, have no legal obligation to abide by it.
However, United Nations General Assembly resolutions carry strong symbolic value.
In this case, it creates global pressure on Israel to back down at a time when it appears intent on escalating operations.
It sends the message to everyone enough is enough,” Riyad Mansour, Palestine’s envoy at the United Nations, told the media after the vote.
Israel expectedly rejected the resolution, calling it a “defence of Nazi terrorists”.