The UN Overwhelmingly Approves the Creation of a Palestinian State: Full Details
In what has been described as a historic step, the United Nations General Assembly voted by an overwhelming majority in favor of a declaration calling for concrete, time-bound, and irreversible measures toward achieving a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians. The decision comes just days ahead of a highly anticipated gathering of world leaders in New York, according to Reuters.
Recognition of the Palestinian State
The seven-page declaration is the outcome of an international conference hosted by the UN in July at the initiative of Saudi Arabia and France, aimed at addressing the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The United States and Israel boycotted the conference, denouncing it as biased.
Voting Results and Global Alignments
The resolution received the support of 142 member states, with 10 voting against and 12 abstaining. It garnered broad backing from Gulf countries, while the United States and Israel were joined in opposition by Argentina, Hungary, Paraguay, Micronesia, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Palau, and Tonga.
The declaration also condemned the Hamas attacks on Israel of October 7, 2023, which triggered the Gaza war. At the same time, it denounced Israeli strikes against civilians and civilian infrastructure, as well as the blockade and starvation policies in the enclave, describing them as a devastating humanitarian catastrophe and a grave protection crisis.
European Positions
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot hailed the resolution, stating that it “cemented Hamas’s international isolation.” For the first time, the UN adopted a text directly condemning the group, calling for its disarmament and surrender.
The resolution further demanded an immediate end to the war in Gaza and called for the deployment of a temporary international stabilization mission under a UN Security Council mandate.
US and Israeli Rejection
The United States dismissed the decision as “irresponsible political propaganda” undermining genuine diplomatic efforts to end the war.
Addressing the General Assembly, US diplomat Morgan Ortagus said the resolution was “a gift to Hamas,” arguing that it did not bring peace closer but rather prolonged the conflict, strengthened the movement, and harmed peace prospects in both the short and long term.
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon condemned the resolution as “a political theater piece serving Hamas alone,” insisting that the only beneficiary of such a step was “a terrorist movement,” which, he argued, meant strengthening terrorism instead of peace.
A significant moment is expected on September 22, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly’s high-level session, when several countries, including the United Kingdom, are anticipated to announce their formal recognition of the State of Palestine—a potential political turning point in the trajectory of the conflict.
