Chameleon Magazine

The US has once again vetoed a UN Security Council resolution demanding a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. The resolution called for the immediate release of hostages, unrestricted humanitarian aid, and an end to the bombardment. Almost the entire world supported it. Only Washington stood in the way.

Why? To answer that, we need to separate the rights Israel does have from the wrongs it keeps committing — and then ask why America keeps defending those wrongs.

Part One: Israel’s Right to Security vs. Gaza’s Right to Live

Israel’s legitimate rights:

• To demand the return of hostages held by Hamas.
• To prevent Hamas from repeating attacks like October 7th.
• To defend its citizens under international law.

Where it collapses:

• Proportionality: The scale of destruction in Gaza far outweighs any claim of “self-defence.” Whole neighbourhoods erased, tens of thousands dead, famine conditions imposed.
• Collective punishment: Cutting off food, water, and medicine to 2 million people is a war crime.
• The endgame illusion: Hamas cannot be bombed out of existence. Every civilian death risks creating the next generation of militants.

⚖️ The contradiction: Israel’s goals (security, safety, return of hostages) are reasonable. Its methods (mass civilian suffering, siege, and devastation) make those goals unattainable.

Part Two: Why the US Keeps Saying “No”

So why does America keep standing alone against the world? Six overlapping reasons explain it:

1. Strategic Alliance – Israel is the US’s anchor in the Middle East: militarily, technologically, and geopolitically.
2. Domestic Politics – Pro-Israel lobbies, bipartisan pressure, and voter sensitivities make support for Israel politically safer in Washington.
3. Narrative Control – The US brands itself as the defender of democracy. Backing Israel is framed as backing “the only democracy in the Middle East.”
4. Fear of Precedent – If the UN can constrain Israel, tomorrow it might constrain US wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, or beyond.
5. Negotiation Leverage – Washington argues that ceasefire resolutions weaken Israel’s hand at the table. In practice, it means giving Israel more military time.
6. Geopolitical Calculus – Weakening Hamas weakens Iran, reassures Gulf partners, and avoids the US looking like it caved to China or Russia at the UN.

The Bottom Line

Israel is right to want its hostages back. It is right not to want Hamas able to strike again. But it is wrong to pursue those aims through collective punishment and mass destruction.

The US, meanwhile, has chosen to protect its alliance with Israel even at the cost of its credibility, its soft power, and the principle of international law it so often claims to defend.

History will remember both: Israel for the devastation it has inflicted, and the US for the vetoes that made it possible.