The UN General Assembly will vote Wednesday on a Palestinian resolution urging Israel to withdraw from Gaza and the occupied West Bank within a year. The resolution demands an end to Israel’s “unlawful presence” and calls for the evacuation of all settlers and military forces, “without delay.”
The resolution is being voted on as the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza nears its one-year anniversary and violence in the West Bank continues to escalate, AP reported.
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian UN Ambassador, opened the assembly meeting on Tuesday, warning of an “existential threat” to Palestinians.
He criticized Israel’s decades-long occupation and called for Palestinians to return to their homes and live in peace and freedom. Despite the resolution’s calls for action, Mansour admitted that Israel is unlikely to comply with its demands.
In response, Israel’s UN Ambassador, Danny Danon, urged member nations to reject the resolution. He called it “diplomatic terrorism” and condemned the UN for failing to mention Hamas’ attacks.
Danon accused the resolution of distorting the facts, saying it “ignores the truth” and elevates false narrratives over reality.
While the resolution is non-binding, its verdict would reflect global opinion on Israel’s military presence in Palestinian territories. Unlike the UN Security Council, the General Assembly does not allow vetoes, meaning a simple majority could pass the measure.
The resolution follows a ruling in July by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which declared Israel’s presence in the Palestinian territories “unlawful,” asserting that Israel has no sovereign rights over the land captured in 1967.
Although this ruling is also non-binding, it served as a foundation for the latest resolution, which condemns Israel’s “abuse of its status as the occupying power.”
Mansour reiterated that the only path to peace remains the creation of an independent Palestinian state, based on the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. He rejected the idea that Palestinians would accept “a life of servitude” and insisted that peace is unattainable without a just resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
US Ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas Greenfield, criticized the resolution, saying it contains “significant flaws” and does not acknowledge Hamas’ role as a terrorist organization in Gaza.
She argued that the resolution could further complicate efforts toward a two-state solution, potentially escalating tensions on the ground.
The resolution also calls for Israel to pay reparations for the damage caused by its occupation and urges countries to prevent trade or investments that support Israel’s presence in Palestinian territories. It advocates for international sanctions against those responsible for maintaining Israel’s hold over the territories, including a halt to arms exports that could be used in the region.