The United Nations General Assembly has voted on a Palestinian-drafted resolution calling on Israel to end its “unlawful presence” in Gaza and the West Bank within 12 months.
The vote at the UN General Assembly took place early on Thursday morning (AEST).
The resolution was passed by 124 votes in favor, with 43 countries — including Australia — abstaining. Israel, the United States and 12 others voted against.
The move has left Israel isolated just days before world leaders travel to New York for their annual UN meeting.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address the 193-member General Assembly on September 26, the same day as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
What is in the resolution?
The resolution welcomes an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice from July, which stated that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements is illegal and must be revoked.
The advisory opinion – from the United Nations’ highest court, also known as the International Court of Justice – said this should be done “as soon as possible”, although the General Assembly resolution sets a deadline of 12 months.
The General Assembly resolution also calls on states to “take steps to stop the import of products originating from Israeli settlements, as well as the supply or transfer of arms, ammunition and related equipment to Israel … when there are reasonable grounds to suspect that they might be used in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
The resolution is the first formally introduced by the Palestinian Authority since it was granted additional rights and privileges this month, including a seat among UN members in the chamber and the right to propose draft resolutions.
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, said his people faced an “existential threat” and urged member states to vote in favour of the resolution. Source: MONKEY / Yuki Iwamura/AP
Israel has occupied the Palestinian territories, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) since the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
In 2005, Israel ended its permanent military presence in Gaza, withdrawing its troops and dismantling its settlements.
However, since 2007, the enclave has remained under a land, air and sea blockade by Israel, and under international law Israel is still considered the occupying power.
The UN believes that both Gaza and the West Bank are still under Israeli occupation, which Israel rejects.
Although neither the ICJ’s advisory opinion nor the resolution is legally binding, it carries weight under international law and the support it provides reflects the world’s perception of the conflict.
What were the arguments for and against the vote?
US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield condemned the draft resolution as “inflammatory” and said it would not contribute to peace.
Ahead of the vote, opposition foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham called on the Albanian government to reject the motion. In an interview with Sky News on Tuesday, he called the motion “one-sided” as it did not condemn Hamas.
But the Greens and the Palestinian envoy to Australia, Izzat Abdulhadi, called on Australia to support the motion.
Abdulhadi said supporting the non-binding resolution would be in line with the views of the UN’s highest court, the International Court of Justice, which the federal government said it respects.
“Every country has a voice and the world is watching us,” Palestinian UN Ambassador Riyad Mansour told the General Assembly on Tuesday ahead of the vote.
“Please stand on the right side of history. With international law. With freedom. With peace.”
Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, urged other member states to reject the resolution, which failed to mention the atrocities committed by Hamas in its October 7 attack on Israel, calling it “an attempt to destroy Israel through diplomatic terrorism.”
Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people during their attack on Israel on October 7 and took about 250 hostages.
More than 41,000 people have been killed in the Israeli army’s retaliatory attack on Gaza, according to the enclave’s Ministry of Health.
With additional reporting from the Australian Associated Press
DEKYAS NEWS World Breaking News and Trusted Source
