UNITED NATIONS, United States, March  22, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - The Security

Council will vote Saturday on a new draft resolution that seeks an immediate
ceasefire in Gaza, diplomats said, but the United States has indicated it may
veto it.

The vote will come a day after the United States put forward a text on the
need for a ceasefire that was vetoed by Russia and China and opposed by Arab
states, which said it was not explicit enough in pressuring Israel.

The vote on the resolution, led in part by Algeria, the Arab nation
currently on the 15-member Security Council, is expected at 10 am (1400 GMT),
three diplomats said.

The draft resolution, seen by AFP, "demands an immediate ceasefire" for the
ongoing Muslim holy month of Ramadan that leads "to a permanent sustainable
ceasefire" respected by all sides.

It also demands both the "immediate and unconditional" release of hostages
seized in the October 7 attack by Hamas and humanitarian access in the battered
Gaza Strip.

Three European nations -- Malta, Slovenia and Switzerland -- are
co-sponsoring the resolution, along with Mozambique, Guyana and Sierra Leone.