India, along with 152 other nations, on Tuesday (Dec 12) voted in favour of a UN General Assembly resolution that called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

For the first time, even close US ally Australia voted in favour of the resolution, marking a rare split in the alliance. The voting pattern laid bare the increased isolation that the US and Israel have been facing amongst the international community.

Only 10 nations voted against the resolution, and 23 nations abstained.

During the explanation of vote (EoV) speech delivered Wednesday (Dec 13), India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ruchira Khamboj said India "welcomes" the fact that the international community had been able to find a "common ground" to address the situation in West Asia.

"Our challenge in this extraordinarily difficult time is to strike the right balance," Khamboj added.

However, she stopped short of clarifying the reason for India's decision to go against the US and Israel-backed resolution.

In a previous resolution on the Israel-Gaza war, dated October 27, India had refused to vote in favour as it did not include any specific reference to the October 7 terror attacks in Israel by Hamas.

But this time, the Indian permanent representative cited the "gravity and complexity" of the issue to justify its vote against Israel.

Responding to this, the Israeli Embassy in Delhi said it appreciated Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "stand with Israel against terrorism" after the attacks.