A year after Israel was ordered to withdraw from the occupied Palestinian lands, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution emphasizing the country’s ongoing international isolation.
The decision, which has no legal significance, comes after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued a landmark advisory opinion in July, asking Israel to “stop all settlement activity there immediately and cease its unlawful presence in the occupied Palestinian territory as soon as possible.”
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There was cheering in the general assembly chamber of New York after a recent motion was carried by 124 votes to 14 with 43 abstentions. America
voted no, while the UK and Australia abstained.
This resolution is the first to support sanctions on Israel since 1982, although the general assembly has frequently condemned Israel, as seen by the two resolutions voted by similar majorities since the crisis started on October 7.
It could have extra weight because it purports to be attempting to uphold an ICJ decision. According to the resolution: “Israel’s security concerns cannot override the principle of the prohibition of the acquisition of territory by force.”
Additionally, it is the first resolution put up by Palestine since the Palestinian delegation was granted the authority to propose resolutions when the UN General Assembly upgraded Palestine’s status as an observer by a vote of 143 to 9. That vote was the result of the US using its veto power in the UN Security Council to prevent Palestine from receiving full UN status back in April.
According to the most recent resolution, “if it is reasonable to suspect that they may be used in the occupied Palestinian territory,” member states should cease supplying Israel with weaponry, ammunition, and associated equipment as well as importing goods made in Israeli settlements.
It also mandates that UN General Secretary António Guterres provide a report on his success in pressuring Israel to collaborate within three months.
Unlike the 15-member security council, the US does not have a veto at the general assembly, but it actively pushed its friends to reduce the number of votes that condemned Israel.
The resolution is expected to validate the widely held belief in Israel that the UN is biased against the nation, even if the assembly decision lacks legal effect.
The vote was characterized as “a shameful decision that backs the Palestinian Authority’s diplomatic terrorism” by Israel’s UN envoy, Danny Danon.
“Instead of marking the anniversary of the 7 October massacre by condemning Hamas and calling for the release of all 101 of the remaining hostages, the general assembly continues to dance to the music of the Palestinian Authority, which backs the Hamas murderers,” Danon stated.
The general assembly demanded in October that more humanitarian supplies be let into Gaza, voting 120 in favor, 14 against, and 45 abstaining. A request for a quick humanitarian ceasefire was approved by the assembly in December by a vote of 153 to 10, with 23 votes against.
The newest resolution was opposed by US ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who claimed it was biased and only partially understood the ICJ’s ruling. As far as she was concerned, this kind of discrimination “did not advance what we all want to see – progress towards two states living in peace, side by side.”
Furthermore, she stated that because the resolution did not label Hamas as a terrorist organization, it was imbalanced.
Osama Mahmoud Abdelkhalek Mahmoud, Egypt’s envoy, expressed the displeasure of Middle Eastern governments during the three-day debate regarding Israel’s protection by the US from the political and legal rulings of international tribunals.
Speaking about settlements and radical settlers, he claimed that if nations honoring international law and the ruling of the International Court of Justice chose to boycott Israel and cease cooperation, the Israeli occupation “would not be viable.”
He further added, “Putting an end to the occupation and deterring Israel’s hostile behavior against the Palestinian people is an urgent necessity to maintain international security and what remains of regional stability.”
He then stated, “Israel has gone too far, and its aggression against the United Nations itself has killed more than 220 UN staff members, as it continues to adopt a law that would criminalize the UN relief agency Unrwa and consider it a terrorist organization.”
