UNITED NATIONS/JERUSALEM/SANAA- The United States on Wednesday vetoed a Security Council draft resolution that would have demanded an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the immediate lifting of all restrictions on humanitarian aid.

The draft resolution, tabled by the 10 elected members of the Security Council, won the support of 14 out of the 15 members of the council. The United States, which holds veto power, voted against it.

The draft resolution would have demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups, and the immediate and unconditional lifting of all restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza and its safe and unhindered distribution at scale.

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The US veto drew criticism from Security Council members.

Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, said China is deeply disappointed at the result of Wednesday's vote.

The draft resolution contains the most pressing demands of the people in Gaza and reflects the overwhelming voice of the international community, he said.

"The United States has once again abused its veto power, extinguishing the glimmer of hope for the people in Gaza and ruthlessly continuing to leave over 2 million people in darkness. It must face the questioning from the international community," he said.

Wednesday's vote result once again exposes that the root cause of the Security Council's inability to quell the conflict in Gaza is the repeated obstruction by the United States, which has vetoed the council's request for a ceasefire multiple times. And because of its shielding of Israel, several resolutions adopted by the council have not been effectively implemented, said Fu in an explanation of the vote.

"A veto by a single permanent member cannot stop the march toward peace. We urge the United States to face up to its responsibilities as a permanent member of the Security Council, abandon its political calculations, and adopt a just and responsible attitude in supporting the council to take all necessary actions," he said.

British UN ambassador Barbara Woodward said her country voted in favor of the draft resolution because the intolerable situation in Gaza needs to end.

The Israeli government's decisions to expand its military operation in Gaza and severely restrict aid into the strip are "unjustifiable, disproportionate, and counter-productive" and the British government completely opposes them, she said.

"The Israeli government says it has opened up aid access with this new system. But Palestinians desperate to feed their families have been killed as they try to reach the very few aid sites that have been permitted by Israel. This is inhumane," said Woodward, referring to the US-run, Israeli-approved Gaza Humanitarian Foundation aid scheme that has led to scores of deaths and injuries among Palestinians seeking aid.

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Britain supports the UN call for immediate and independent investigations into these incidents and for perpetrators to be held accountable, she said, adding that Israel needs to end its restrictions on aid and let the world body carry out its humanitarian operations in Gaza.

Algerian UN ambassador Amar Bendjama said the draft resolution was not the voice of the few, but the collective will of the entire world.

"It was a message to the people of Palestine: you are not alone. And it was a message to the Israeli occupier: the world watched you. The shield of impunity, of immunity must fall," he said.

"This (draft) humanitarian resolution, even in its obstruction by a veto, is a mirror -- a mirror that reflects the agony of multilateralism, and an urgent need to revive it," he said.

Pakistani UN ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said his country deeply regretted the failure of the Security Council to adopt the resolution.

"It's a sad day, another low in the history of this august body that is entrusted with the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security," he said.

The veto cast by the United States sends a dangerous message that the lives of over 2 million Palestinians, besieged, starved and relentlessly bombarded, are dispensable, he said. "This will remain not only a moral stain on the conscience of this council, but a fateful moment of political abdication that will reverberate for generations."

While the Security Council deliberated and delayed, Gaza has been decimated, said the ambassador. "This is no longer a humanitarian crisis. It is a collapse of humanity, and of international law and of all that this council is supposed to stand for."

"Let us be clear: this failure will not go down in records as a mere procedural footnote. It will be remembered as complicity; a green light for continued annihilation; a moment where the entire world was expecting action, but yet again, this council was blocked and prevented by one member from carrying out its responsibility," said Ahmad.

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Israeli forces detained 24 Palestinians across the West Bank over the past 24 hours in a wave of raids targeting suspected militants and arms traffickers, the military said on Wednesday.

In a joint statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the Shin Bet domestic security agency, and the Israel Police said nine suspects were arrested overnight during operations in the northern town of Tamun and the nearby Far'a refugee camp. Among those detained were several individuals described as key weapons dealers, including one alleged to have supplied the firearm used in a deadly attack last month that killed an Israeli soldier at a checkpoint.

An M-16 rifle and other weapons were seized during the overnight raids, the statement said.

In separate operations across the territory, another 15 suspects were arrested and seven additional weapons confiscated. All detainees and the seized arms were handed over to Shin Bet and police for further investigation.

Violence in the West Bank has surged since the start of the Gaza war on Oct 7, 2023. The Israeli military has ramped up operations, particularly in the north, amid a spike in settler attacks and near-daily clashes with Palestinian factions.

According to international humanitarian organizations, around 1,000 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since the Gaza conflict erupted.

Meanwhile, the IDF on Wednesday night issued an urgent warning to residents of the Gaza Strip to avoid moving northward for their safety.

IDF spokesman Avichay Adraee addressed Gazan residents who have returned or intend to return to Beit Lahia, Jabalia, and Beit Hanoun, all north of Gaza City, on social media X, warning that the IDF is operating in these areas with "heavy force".

He stated that the areas north of Salah Khalaf street in Gaza City and Al Quds street in Jabalia are considered dangerous combat zones.

Also on Wednesday, an Israeli reserve soldier was killed and another seriously wounded during a clash in the northern Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said.

READ MORE: Israel orders evacuations in southern Gaza as ground offensive expands

The military identified the slain soldier as Master Sergeant Alon Farkas, 27, from the 6646th Reconnaissance Battalion, 646th Brigade. He "fell during combat" in the Shuja'iyya neighborhood of Gaza City, the military said, without elaborating. Another reserve soldier from the same battalion was seriously injured.

The incident came a day after the military reported that three other soldiers were killed in an explosion in the Jabaliya area, also in northern Gaza.

At least 54,510 people have been killed and 124,901 wounded in Gaza during the Israeli military campaign, according to health authorities in the territory.

Yemen's Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a statement on Wednesday night that the group had launched two drone attacks on Ben Gurion Airport in central Israel earlier in the day.

"Our operations will continue until the (Israeli) aggression against Gaza stops and the blockade is lifted," Sarea said in the statement, aired by Houthi-run al-Masirah TV.

The IDF confirmed that a drone that was launched from the east was intercepted. No casualty has been reported.

UN humanitarians said Wednesday that less than half of their aid trucks submitted for Israeli clearance were allowed into Gaza, while the new, deadly US-run aid process suspended operation.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said only 50 flour-bearing trucks of the more than 130 aid trucks submitted for final clearance at the only crossing, Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem, were approved for entry into Gaza on Wednesday.

It was announced earlier in the week that the US-run, Israeli-approved Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) aid setup that has led to scores of deaths and injuries from Palestinians rushing to its aid distribution points was suspending its operation for Wednesday to assess the plan.

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The United Nations and several international aid agencies were critical of the GHF operation from the day the new scheme was announced, saying they had the track-proven system, despite Israeli claims Hamas was appropriating aid for its means.

UN Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator Suzanna Tkalec visited Gaza City's Al Ahli hospital, which has sustained multiple attacks since the beginning of the war and was told that preventable deaths are occurring due to shortages of critical supplies, including antibiotics.

Tkalec called for the protection of health facilities and support for the United Nations and its partners to deliver aid on a large scale to alleviate people's suffering. The world body and its partners are continuously appealing to the Israeli authorities to enable humanitarians to address the crisis in Gaza meaningfully.