Will President Biden use his final days in the White House to join the United Nations Security Council in demanding an end to the Israeli military operations in Gaza? A vote is expected as early as Tuesday, and an American veto of such a demand is far from guaranteed.  

Text of a proposed Security Council resolution on Gaza “demands an immediate, unconditional, and permanent cease-fire to be respected by all parties.” Israel is opposed to the maneuver, which is inconsistent with its war aims. Three diplomatic sources tell the Sun that Washington is yet to decide whether to abstain — which could let the measure go through — or to block it with a veto.  

After President Trump won the election in 2016, the outgoing president, Barack Obama, pushed for a council resolution that shifted America’s approach to the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. Resolution 2334 passed in December of that year, after the election and before Trump was sworn in.

Tensions between Washington and Jerusalem are not as high as they were in 2016. Yet, public clashes often surface between Prime Minister Netanyahu and Mr. Biden, and Israeli diplomats fear a repeat of Mr. Obama’s lame-duck retaliation at the UN.   

Originally drafted a few weeks ago by Algeria in the name of the Arab bloc at the UN council, the text of the proposed resolution was endorsed by the 10 non-permamanent members of the body. Rather than telling the group that the draft is a non-starter, American diplomats immediately started negotiating over its language.  

Following text changes over the weekend, four of the council’s permanent, veto-wielding members — Russia, Communist China, France, and Britain — joined the elected countries in supporting the proposal. Adding to the cease-fire demand, the amended text now says the council “further reiterates its demand for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.” 

Release of all hostages held in Gaza is one of the Israeli government’s declared war goals, as decided immediately after October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched an unprovoked terrorist attack. In contrast, the current proposed resolution “fails to outline the release of the hostages as a condition” for ending the war, the Israeli ambassador at the UN, Danny Danon, told the Council on Monday. 

“Such a decision would be a betrayal. Not only of Israel, but of the 101 families and their loved ones being tormented by terrorist monsters,” Mr. Danon said. Israel, he vowed, “will defend its people. We will never abandon our hostages, 

never forget them, and never stop fighting for them.” History, he said, “will remember who stood with us to uphold peace and justice, and who allowed terror to flourish.” 

Last week, Mr. Danon told reporters that the American government transition period is a “challenging time” for Israel. “I was here at the UN in 2016 and right before Christmas, President Obama and Secretary Kerry — even though they denied it — pushed Resolution 2334.” The resolution claimed that Israeli West Bank settlements “have no legal validity,” and that they constitute a “flagrant violation of international law.”

Prior to Washington’s 2016 abstention on that resolution, members of the American mission to the UN, including Ambassador Samantha Power, stopped returning calls from Israeli counterparts, Mr. Danon told the Sun at the time. The situation now is much more cordial. Diplomats say that there is good communication at the UN between the two sides. 

Yet, as Mr. Biden’s days in office wind down, Mr. Netanyahu seems more willing than in the past to publicly highlight his defiance of the president’s war-time restrictions on Israel.  

Addressing the Knesset on Monday, Mr. Netanyahu said that despite a White House admonition to avoid hitting Iran’s nuclear facilities, “there is a specific component in their nuclear programme that was hit” when Israel struck Iran on October 26. 

Additionally, he confirmed that Mr. Biden is restricting some arms deliveries to Israel. “If need be, we will fight with our fingernails,” he said.  

At Washington, meanwhile, the Department of State announced new sanctions Monday against three Israeli entities and three individuals “for their roles in violence targeting civilians or in the destruction or dispossession of property. Their actions, collectively and individually, undermine peace, security, and stability in the West Bank and the safety of both Israelis and Palestinians.”

The tensions between Washington and Mr. Netanyahu’s government will likely ease soon. “Trump’s first promise to Israel: On the first day of my term, I will cancel all restrictions and delays on the transfer of armaments and combat equipment,” a prominent Israeli reporter, Amit Segal, writes on X. Trump also nominated an evangelist champion of West Bank Jewish settlements, Mike Huckabee, as ambassador to Israel. 

The two months until January 20, though, could be fraught for Israel. On Monday, Senator Van Hollen joined Senator Sanders in calling for a pause in some offensive military sales to the Jewish state. While the Senate is unlikely to approve it, will Mr. Biden appease anti-Israel Democrats by abstaining at the UN?

Correction: Senator Van Hollen is calling for a pause in some offensive military sales to Israel. The proposal was misstated in an earlier version.