Palestine UN Vote Expected Thursday; Hamas Endorses Plan
Vote Expects to Win Overwhelming Support from General Assembly
The long-discussed UN draft resolution on upgrading Palestine’s status to “non-member observer state” is expected to come to a vote on Thursday, and is receiving a last-minute shot in the arm with an endorsement from Hamas.
Hamas had previously expressed ambivalence about the move, but in the wake of last week’s Gaza War is moving toward reconciliation with Fatah, and today’s endorsement underscores how much those unity talks have already progressed.
Israel and the United States have repeatedly pressed Fatah to scrap the plan, with the US insisting it would hurt peace negotiations (that have been stalled for over a year at any rate) and Israel threatening unspecified retaliation.
But the vote itself, assuming it comes, isn’t expected to be close. With 193 member states voting in the general assembly, the overwhelming majority are likely to back Palestinian statehood, with only a handful of nations liable to vote against it.
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MoT
November 26th, 2012 at 9:21 pm
Peace negotiations? That's a hoot. These so-called "talks" have been going on for what seems forever and all the Israelis do is build more settlements in the interim. That, of course, was the intention all along.
mojo
November 27th, 2012 at 10:48 am
It's about time for the people of middle east to unite and let their voice to be heard that they are sick and tired playing the political games orchestrated by the western ancient Roman democracy, a falsified concept where people in Middle East been losing their life's to an established apartheid regime as Israel is. It is about time for the people of Middle East to stand against the true tyranny of the Middle East as Saudi Arabia and UAE is, it is about time for the people of Middle East to stand against the rule of Neo dictatorial established by the west and for the west, its about time for the Palestinians to have their homeland back, to have their stolen land back, to have their dignity and unity back, its about time.
John Ellis
November 27th, 2012 at 6:31 pm
Israel has a fake democracy, for the 51% most wealthy always vote to impoverish the lower half of society causing 20% of Israel children to suffer hunger.
davidgrayling
November 27th, 2012 at 8:50 pm
My country, I'm ashamed to say, is abstaining from voting. Our Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, was rolled by her party because she wanted to vote against the move to endorse the Palestinians, throw in her lot with the Americans. What a bitch!
Hopefully, one day, the Israelis will get their just deserts, that is pushed into the Sahara Desert where they can wander and wail for an eternity!