Image: News_PalestineUN_1: “Palestine at the UN” by barry.pousman is licensed under CC BY 2.0. Via Creative Commons
On Sept. 19, Palestinian ambassadors put up a non-binding vote for the United Nations General Assembly on a resolution deal for the state of Israel and Palestine. The resolution included a deadline on Israel’s military presence in Gaza as well as the removal of settler-occupied territories in the West Bank. The verdict was in favor by a vote of 124–14 with 43 assembly members abstaining. The resolution includes plans for Israel to immediately withdraw from Gaza in accordance with international law as well as the evacuation of Israeli settlers in the West Bank and the deconstruction of the separation barrier that runs vertically through the country on the western border of the West Bank. AP News reported that Palestinians’ UN proposal has demanded Israel leave Gaza and the West Bank.
The proposal is not legally binding, however its support would essentially “reflect world opinion,” according to Edith M. Lederer for AP NEWS. The non-binding classification means that nothing is legally required to be followed or prohibited, but the sentiment and opinions of the General Assembly shows how ambassadors feel in regards to Israel’s military action. In order for a resolution to become a binding document in the U.N., it must be adopted by the Security Council. A binding document could be put up to vote amongst the Security Council or the General Assembly. The U.N. Security Council focuses more on keeping international peace and security, as well as suggesting new U.N. members to the General Assembly. The U.S., being one of five Security Council members with lifetime membership, holds the power to veto or adopt a binding resolution.
Palestine’s Current Status in the U.N.
Palestine was granted a unique seat among the U.N. members just a week prior during the 79th general assembly on Tuesday, Sept. 10. Its position among the members is unique: as a non-member state, it is unable to vote on General Assembly drafts or put its bid in for Security Council membership. But its limited rights do allow it to draft proposals for the rest of the General Assembly members to vote on. The decision over Palestinian membership was again let up to the General Assembly of 193 member nations back in May of this year. The original vote was regarding Palestine’s ability for membership status, something that ambassadors have been working towards for decades. That vote was even clearer with an outcome of 143–9 with only 25 abstentions. Just like in this recent vote for a resolution, both the U.S. and Israel voted against it.
The Times of Israel reports that the General Assembly resolution met all the requirements for full membership status and that the Security Council should “reconsider the matter favorably.”
However, there are no abilities to veto in the General Assembly, so the motion to grant Palestine special abilities as a non-member proceeded.was able to proceed.
The General Committee includes members from all 193 member nations, whereas the Security Council holds the ability for veto power when it comes to General Committee decisions and activities. The Security Council members include the U.S., France, the United Kingdom, the Russian Republic and China year-round, while the other nine members serve terms for two years.
Who Voted on Resolution to End Israeli Occupation, and What it Means
When asked about their feelings towards the U.N. decision, an anonymous leading member of WCU’s Student Coalition of the Liberation of Palestine (SCLP) stated that, “it’s a step in the right direction…but it’s mostly symbolic,” referring to Palestine’s non-member seat among member states.
The resolution proposed on Sept. 19, was drafted after the International Court of Justice’s ruling that Israel’s claim over the sovereign territory of Palestine and subsequent gain of control over the land by force was a direct violation of international law.
Israel opposed the resolution, with ally nations like the U.S., Argentina and Paraguay voting the same — the only three nations in the Americas to do so according to Al Jazeera writer Maziar Motamedi. Countries such as South Africa, Spain, Ireland and Japan voted in favor of Palestine’s resolution to remove Israel’s occupation in Palestinian territory. Notable abstentions to vote on the matter included Canada, Germany, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. These abstentions show how over the past year, Israel’s military actions in Gaza have led some nations’ loyalties to waver. In official releases or interviews, Justin Trudeau’s Canada andKeir Starmer’s United Kingdom have recently changed their positions when it comes to some of Israel’s tactics and have started to posture towards a ceasefire deal. While still holding the idea of Israel’s right to self-defense, these leaders and governments have begun to criticize the tactics and cost of human life that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has decided to make.
Shortly after Netanyahu had the opportunity to speak during a U.N. assembly on Sept. 28, Israel officially barred Secretary General António Guterres from entering Israel. Guterres’ position is described as the “chief administrative officer of the [U.N.] [o]rganization” which has the power to “bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which in their opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security” according to the U.N. official website. Lederer writes that disagreements between Israeli leadership and the U.N. ambassadors have always been present, but since the initial attack on Oct. 7 that activated the most recent Israeli military campaign, the rift between U.N. diplomats and Israel has only grown wider.
Previous Attempts at Membership
This is a historic decision for the territory and Palestinian people, as so far they have only managed to be recognized as a non-member observer state at the U.N., according to the Better World Campaign. The last vote presented to the General Committee was in 2012 by Algeria. They were unsuccessful then, with the vote coming out to be 138–9 with 41 abstentations but a veto from the U.S., resulting in Palestine being benched as an observer at the U.N. This time however, many nations agreed to grant their status as an observer member, giving Palestinian U.N. ambassadors the ability to speak at the U.N. As a U.N. observer member, however, Palestine is unable to vote on general committee decisions, such as the one regarding its membership status.
In April, a vote on Palestine’s membership was held to the dismay of Israeli and U.S. ambassadors. This vote was decided by the Security Council, a select group of 15 nations that hold special veto power on U.N. decisions and drafts. When put up to the council, it was a 12–1 vote in favor of Palestine’s membership status, with the U.K. and Swiss ambassadors abstaining, and the U.S. being the only vote against it.
As of Sept. 29, President Biden has stated that he seeks to have a discussion with Netanyahu to ease tension and prevent a wider war within the region after further Israeli military attacks in Lebanon against Hezbollah, a Shiite political party and militia based in Lebanon.
Gaven Mitchell is a third-year History major with a minor in Journalism.