JERUSALEM, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Israel rejected a United Nations (UN) resolution condemning Israel's violence against Palestinians in Gaza, and blamed Hamas and the Palestinian president on Thursday for the crisis in Gaza.
On Wednesday, the UN General Assembly endorsed a resolution condemning Israel's "use of any excessive, disproportionate and indiscriminate force" against Palestinians in Gaza.
The resolution won 120 votes in the 193-member assembly, with eight votes against.
The vote came after Israeli forces stationed near the fence between Israel and Gaza have killed at least 122 Palestinians and injured hundreds during protests that began on March 30. No Israeli was killed.
The resolution also urged Israel to lift the harsh economic sanctions and the 12-year crippling blockade.
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley voted against the motion, and denounced it as "morally bankrupt."
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office released a statement commending Haley for her "strong statement exposing the hypocrisy of the UN's bias against Israel."
It also praised U.S. President Donald Trump's administration for its "steadfast support for Israel at the UN."
The office also accused Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement that runs Gaza, of the violence in Gaza.
The loss of life and suffering are the result of the violent riots over the last few weeks, the statement read, adding "rather than improving the lives of the people of Gaza, Hamas is using the Palestinian population as human shields in its unremitting terror war against Israel."
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was accused of worsening the humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave. "Abbas has only made the humanitarian situation in Gaza worse by reducing payments of salaries to Gaza and refusing to pay for electricity provided to Gaza," according to the statement.
"The people of Gaza are not our enemy. Hamas is," the statement said.
According to the office, Trump's son-in-law and special advisor Jared Kushner and the Middle East envoy, Jason Greenblatt, will arrive in the region next week to discuss "ways to advance peace between Israelis and Palestinians and between Israel and the broader Arab world."
Kushner and Greenblatt are reportedly to visit Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
"We should also work to take advantage of the many positive changes occurring in the region to advance a genuine and durable peace," the office's statement said.
