US warns Israel against ground offensive into Rafah in draft UN resolution

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The US is circulating a UN Security Council resolution warning Israel against a “major ground offensive” into Rafah, the city in Gaza near the Egyptian border where about 1.5mn people are sheltering from the conflict elsewhere in the enclave.

The move represents rare criticism of Israel by the US at the UN, reflecting President Joe Biden’s frustration with the conduct of the Israeli government’s war in Gaza and high death toll among Palestinian civilians — and as the planned attack on Rafah becomes a potential breaking point for Washington.

The US move in the UN also comes as Biden faces growing pressure internationally from key US allies and domestically from influential lawmakers within the Democratic party to persuade Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to wind down the war in favour of a more limited counter-terrorism strategy against Hamas.

The use of a UN Security Council Resolution to call for a shift in Israel’s strategy represents a big diplomatic milestone for the US, which typically defends Israel at the organisation and recently vetoed a resolution calling for a ceasefire.

According to a draft text of the US’s proposed resolution, which was obtained by the Financial Times, the UN body would say that “under current circumstances a major ground offensive into Rafah would result in further harm to civilians and their further displacement including potentially into neighbouring countries”.

The draft adds that a military operation “would have serious implications for regional peace and security” and demands that it “not proceed under current circumstances”. News of the draft text was first reported by Bloomberg on Monday.

The UN Security Council is responsible for protecting international peace and security and includes 15 countries that can vote on resolutions. While 10 are rotating members, the other…