UN | US blocks full Palestinian membership

(United Nations) The United States put an end to the Palestinians’ dream of full membership in the UN on Thursday, unsurprisingly vetoing in the Security Council a demand hated by their Israeli ally, in the midst of the war in Gaza. .

For several weeks, the Palestinians, who have had the lower status of “non-member observer state” since 2012, as well as the Arab countries, have implored the Council to accept that a “Palestinian state” already recognized by the majority of capitals take its “legitimate” place within the United Nations.

In vain. The United States, which did everything to delay the vote, did not hesitate to use its right of veto which it regularly uses to protect its Israeli ally.

A decision immediately denounced by the Palestinian Authority seeing it as a “blatant aggression” which pushes the Middle East “to the brink of the abyss”.

This rejection “will not break our will, will not stop our determination. We will not stop our efforts. The State of Palestine is inevitable, it is real,” said Palestinian Ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour in tears.

“Do not forget that when this session is adjourned, innocent people in Palestine will continue to pay with their lives and the lives of their children the price of Israeli actions (…), the price of delaying justice, of freedom and peace,” he lamented during a speech that provoked tears in the Council room.

The draft resolution presented by Algeria which recommended Palestinian membership received 12 votes for, 1 against and 2 abstentions (United Kingdom and Switzerland).

“Today is a sad day,” lamented the new Chinese ambassador Fu Cong. “The dream of the Palestinian people has been destroyed.”

But despite the American veto, the “overwhelming” support of Council members “sends a very clear message: the State of Palestine deserves its place” at the UN, launched Algerian Ambassador Amar Bendjama, promising on behalf of the group Arab to present this request again at a later date. “Yes, we will come back, stronger and noisier.”

The admission of a State to the UN must receive a positive recommendation from the Council (at least 9 votes out of 15 in favor, without veto from a permanent member), then be approved by the General Assembly, by a majority of two-thirds.

The United States has repeatedly reiterated that its position “has not changed” since 2011, when Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ application for membership fell through before it even reached the Council stage.

“Premature actions”

“This vote does not reflect opposition to a Palestinian state, but is a recognition that it can only arise from direct negotiations between the parties,” justified Deputy United States Ambassador Robert Wood, regretting “premature actions here in New York, even with the best intentions.”

The United States also highlighted American legislation that would require it to cut its funding to the UN in the event of Palestinian membership outside of such a bilateral agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.

The last veto of a state’s membership in the UN dates back to 1976, when the Americans blocked entry into Vietnam.

The Israelis also virulently denounced the Palestinian initiative, criticizing the simple fact that the Council was examining it.

And its rejection did not satisfy them, their ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan denouncing the countries which supported it.

“Talking to this Council is like talking to a wall,” he said, believing that these favorable voices would encourage the Palestinians not to return to the negotiating table and “make peace almost impossible”.

The Israeli government opposes the two-state solution, supported by a large majority of the international community, including the United States.

And the majority of the UN’s 193 member states (137 by the Palestinian Authority’s count) unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state.

In this context, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres painted a frightening picture of the situation in the Middle East “on the brink of the precipice” before the Security Council.

“A miscalculation, a miscommunication, a mistake, could lead to the unthinkable, a widespread regional conflict which would be devastating for all those concerned, and for the rest of the world,” he warned.

As for Gaza, “six and a half months of Israeli military operations have created humanitarian hell,” he lamented.

The war was triggered by the attack on Israel on October 7 by Hamas commandos infiltrated from Gaza, which resulted in the death of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP report based on data. Israeli officials.

Israeli retaliatory operations in the Gaza Strip left 33,970 dead, mainly civilians, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health.