Despite mounting worldwide concern about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the United States vetoed a Security Council measure on Thursday, putting an end to a long-short Palestinian bid for full United Nations membership.
The move by Israel’s main ally was expected ahead of the vote, which came more than six months after Israel launched a military incursion in the beleaguered Palestinian territory, in reprisal for the Hamas terrorists’ deadly October 7 attack on southern Israel.
Twelve nations supported the draft resolution supporting full Palestinian membership. Britain and Switzerland abstained.
The office of Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas called the US veto a blatant aggression, which pushes the region ever further to the edge of the abyss.
“The fact that this resolution did not pass will not break our will, and it will not defeat our determination”, Palestinian Ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour stated in tears.
Mansour went on to say, “We will not stop in our effort. The state of Palestine is inevitable. It is real”.
“Please remember that once this session adjourns, there are innocents in Palestine paying the price with their lives… for the delay in justice, freedom, and peace”, Mansour concluded as others in the room grieved.
The draft resolution proposed recommending to the General Assembly that the State of Palestine be admitted to membership of the United Nations instead of its current non-member observer state status, which it has held since 2012.
Despite the US rejection, Algerian Ambassador Amar Bendjama, who introduced the draft, said the resolution’s overwhelming support sends a crystal clear message that the Palestinians deserve a full member state and that their supporters will return stronger and more vocal.
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