On the morning of May 10, local time, at the request of many countries, the 10th emergency special session of the United Nations General Assembly was resumed. The meeting considered the issue of admitting Palestine as a new Member of the United Nations and adopted a resolution granting more rights to Palestine.
In the vote, 193 Member States adopted the resolution by an absolute majority of 143 votes in favor, 9 against and 25 abstentions, while the United States and Israel voted against.
In accordance with the provisions of the UN Charter, the admission of new members must be approved by both the Security Council and the General Assembly. UN General Assembly resolutions are not binding on Member States, but rather an expression of international will, but are implemented by UN bodies.
In addition to reaffirming the "two-state solution" to the Palestinian-Israeli issue, the resolution affirms Palestine's membership in the UN Charter and recommends that the Security Council reconsider the application submitted by Palestine on this basis.
In addition, the resolution decided to grant Palestine additional rights to the United Nations, including the right to sit in the membership in alphabetical order, the right to propose and introduce proposals, and to participate in the Bureau of the General Assembly and its Committee. However, the resolution makes it clear that Palestine does not have the right to vote and cannot be a candidate for a seat in a United Nations body.
The draft resolution was sponsored by the United Arab Emirates. "In accordance with Article 4 of the Charter, Palestine is eligible for membership and should therefore be acceded," the draft states. ”
"The UNGA resolution demonstrates the world's support for the Palestinian people"
In explanations of vote after the vote, the representatives of the various countries to the United Nations left their seats to congratulate Al-Mansour, Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a statement thanking the countries that voted for Palestine at the meeting for their "support for truth and justice."
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (data map)
In his statement, Abbas said the overwhelming vote in favor of Palestine demonstrated the world's support for the freedom and rights of the Palestinian people and its rejection of Israel's occupation of Palestinian land and aggression against the Palestinian people. In the light of the results of this vote, the State of Palestine will continue its efforts to adopt the decisions of the Security Council leading to full membership in the United Nations and calls on more States to recognize the State of Palestine.
Abbas called on the United States to stop its partiality towards Israel, and called on the international community to exert pressure on Israel to implement relevant UN resolutions, end Israel's occupation of Palestinian land, and recognize the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.
At the same time, Abbas stressed that Israel must end its occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem as soon as possible, immediately withdraw its troops completely from the Gaza Strip, provide humanitarian assistance to all areas of Gaza, and allow displaced people to return to their homes.
Israeli Foreign Minister Katz issued a statement saying that the UN General Assembly's decision to elevate the status of Palestine in the UN was a so-called "reward" for the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and encouraged Hamas's violent attacks, a decision that highlighted the UN's structural bias against Israel.
China welcomes the adoption of the historic resolution by the General Assembly
Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, said in his speech after the vote that China participated in the historic resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly on the same day, welcomed the adoption of the resolution, and supported the Security Council's reconsideration of Palestine's application for membership in the UN.
Fu Cong said that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has been repeating itself for decades. Formal membership in the United Nations is a crucial step in this historical process, and Palestine should enjoy the same status as Israel, and the Palestinian people should enjoy the same rights as the Israeli people. It is the common responsibility of the international community to support and advance the process of independent and state-building of Palestine and to provide a strong guarantee for the implementation of the two-state solution and the realization of lasting peace in the Middle East.
Fu Cong said that China welcomes this historic resolution, which reflects the aspirations of the international community. China participated in the co-sponsorship of the resolution. China supports the Security Council's reconsideration of the application of the State of Palestine as soon as possible, as called for in the General Assembly resolutions.
Source丨CCTV News, Global Network