'A moment of true historic proportion': Trump welcomes UN vote on Gaza peace plan

The UN Security Council has passed a US-drafted resolution which supports Donald Trump's peace plan for Gaza.

The 20-point proposal, announced last month, includes the establishment of a so-called Board of Peace as a transitional authority to be led by the president. US ambassador Mike Waltz said the "historic" resolution was "another significant step towards a stable Gaza".

Mr Trump himself, who has been a vocal critic of the UN, later welcomed the vote as "one of the biggest approvals" in the organisation's history. "A moment of true Historic proportion," he wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Russia, which had circulated a rival resolution, abstained along with China on the 13-0 vote. Read more: What does Trump's Gaza peace plan look like? The proposal gives no timeline or guarantee for an independent Palestinian state, only saying "the conditions may finally be in place" after advances in the reconstruction of Gaza and reforms of the Palestinian Authority - now governing parts of the West Bank.

It also says that the US "will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous co-existence". The language on statehood was strengthened after Arab nations and Palestinians pressured the US over nearly two weeks of negotiations, but it has also angered Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

He has vowed to oppose any attempt to establish a Palestinian state, and on Sunday pledged to demilitarise Gaza "the easy way or the hard way". Hamas: International force is 'in favour of' Israel In a statement rejecting the resolution's passing, a Hamas spokesperson said it "falls far short of the political and humanitarian demands and rights of our Palestinian people".

"The effects and repercussions of this war continue to this day, despite the declared end of the war according to President Trump's plan," they added. "The resolution imposes an international trusteeship mechanism on the Gaza Strip, which our people, their forces, and factions reject." The spokesperson then said that "assigning the international force with tasks and roles inside the Gaza Strip, including disarming the resistance, strips it of its neutrality, and turns it into a party to the conflict in favour of the occupation".

The Palestinian Authority, however, issued a statement welcoming the resolution and said it is ready to take part in its implementation. Read more:Trump asks Israeli president to 'fully pardon' NetanyahuInside warehouse holding Gaza aid 'refused entry by Israel' Mr Trump's plan began with a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas which led to Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners being handed over.

The war began following the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, when around 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage. According to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, almost 70,000 Palestinians have killed by Israel's military campaign..