The UN General Assembly on Friday overwhelmingly voted to endorse a declaration outlining an “irreversible” path to Palestinian statehood.
The seven-page declaration is the result of an international conference at the UN in July – hosted by Saudi Arabia and France – on the decades-long conflict. The United States and Israel boycotted the event.
A resolution endorsing the declaration was approved by 142 countries, with 10 against and 12 abstentions.
The declaration says the war in Gaza “must end now” and support the deployment of a temporary international stabilization mission mandated by the UN Security Council.
The vote comes ahead of a meeting of world leaders on September 22 – on the sidelines of the high-level UN General Assembly – where Britain, France, Canada, Australia, and Belgium are expected to formally recognize a Palestinian state. The United States described Friday’s vote as “yet another misguided and ill-timed publicity stunt” that undermined serious diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.
“Make no mistake, this resolution is a gift to Hamas,” US diplomat Morgan Ortagus told the General Assembly. “Far from promoting peace, the conference has already prolonged the war, emboldened Hamas and harmed the prospects of peace in both the short and long term.”
Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said this “one-sided declaration will not be remembered as a step toward peace, only as another hollow gesture that weakens this assembly’s credibility…This is not diplomacy. It is theater.”
The only beneficiary is Hamas, he said.
“When terrorists are the ones cheering, you are not advancing peace; you are advancing terror.”
The resolution calls for the Palestinian Authority to assume leadership of a Palestinian state with appropriate international support, and it demands Hamas end its control of Gaza.
The declaration condemns the attacks by Israel against civilians and civilian infrastructure in Gaza, siege, and starvation, “which have resulted in a devastating humanitarian catastrophe and protection crisis.”
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the resolution secured the international isolation of Hamas.
“For the first time today, the United Nations adopted a text condemning it for its crimes and calling for its surrender and disarmament,” he said on X/Twitter.
Calls to recognize Palestinian statehood
The resolution was supported by all Gulf Arab states. Israel and the United States voted against it, along with Argentina, Hungary, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, and Tonga.
The issue of Palestinian statehood has gained new momentum over the past two years as numerous countries voiced their criticism of the war in Gaza.
Israeli authorities have been vocally critical of plans to recognize a Palestinian state, arguing such a move would reward Hamas for its terrorism and perpetuate future violence.
International bodies have expressed a preference that the Palestinian Authority would take over leadership of a Palestinian state, despite having been ousted from the Gaza Strip nearly 20 years ago. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asserted that the PA would not have a role in governing the Strip.