The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) gave Israel 12 months to end its “unlawful presence” in the occupied Palestinian territory.
The forum adopted a resolution, which was drafted by the State of Palestine. About 124 members voted in favor of the resolution, 14, including Israel and the United States, voted against it, and 43 abstained from voting altogether.
The move comes ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s scheduled address to the UNGA on the 26th of September. The resolution also referred to the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) stance on the matter, highlighting the latter’s declaration of Israeli occupation as illegal.
As per ICJ’s advisory opinion, the occupation must end as soon as possible. However, the UNGA gave Israel 12 months to do. The resolution further called on states to avoid importing products that may have originated in the occupied territories.
It also urged the states to avoid transferring arms and munitions to Israel if they are suspected to be used in these territories.
What makes this resolution unique is the fact that it was drafted by the State of Palestine, represented by the Palestinian Authority.
The representative body of the Palestinians recently got additional rights at the UN and could put forth draft resolutions for the first time. Despite the US’ efforts to gain maximum votes against the resolution, the assembly still passed it with a majority vote.
It is worth noting here that, unlike the United Nations Security Council’s (UNSC) resolutions, the UNGA’s resolutions are not binding.
Its status is similar to the advisory opinion of the ICJ, as it can weaken Israel’s position internationally by putting political and legal weight behind the Palestinian cause..While the Israeli ambassador highlighted the events of the 7th of October and criticized the assembly for not condemning them, the Palestinian envoy highlighted that since every country had a vote in the absence of veto power, it was important for members to side with international law, freedom and peace, and to stand on the right side of history.
The Israeli envoy called the resolution ‘diplomatic terrorism’. While the current war in Gaza began on the 7th of October last year, Israel’s occupation of Palestine goes back decades. The West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem have been under Israeli occupation since 1967. Since the outbreak of the war last year, more than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed while 2.3 million have been displaced from their homes.
UNSC meeting
Following the deadly pager blasts in Lebanon against Hezbollah, the UNSC will meet on Friday at the request of Arab states. Reacting to the attacks, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for efforts to prevent escalation in Lebanon, considering that the country faces a serious risk of a “major military operation” following the “pre-emptive strike”. He called for restraint and warned against weaponizing civilians during this tense period.
A day after thousands of pagers exploded across the country, the second round of attack on Wednesday also led to more casualties and injuries. Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared this as “the start of a new phase in the war”. Without explicitly mentioning the blasts, he appreciated the work of Israeli agencies, terming the results
impressive.
