The United Nations General Assembly on Friday overwhelmingly endorsed a declaration calling for “tangible, timebound, and irreversible steps” toward a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while also condemning Hamas for its October 7, 2023, assault on Israel.
The resolution, based on a declaration from a July international conference co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and France, passed with 142 votes in favor, 10 against, and 12 abstentions. The United States and Israel boycotted the conference and voted against the resolution, joined by Argentina, Hungary, Paraguay, and several Pacific island states.
The seven-page text denounces both Hamas’s deadly attacks on Israel, which killed 1,200 people and saw more than 250 taken hostage, and Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza, citing civilian casualties, infrastructure destruction, and a humanitarian crisis marked by starvation and siege conditions.
According to local health authorities, more than 64,000 people in Gaza have been killed since the war began.
The declaration insists the war in Gaza “must end now” and calls for the deployment of a temporary international stabilization mission under U.N. Security Council mandate. All Gulf Arab states supported the measure, reflecting a rare consensus within the Arab world on both condemning Hamas and backing steps toward Palestinian statehood.
U.S. officials sharply criticized the vote. “Make no mistake, this resolution is a gift to Hamas,” said American diplomat Morgan Ortagus, describing it as “misguided and ill-timed” and warning it could undermine peace talks.
Israel’s U.N. ambassador Danny Danon echoed that view, dismissing the text as “theater” and claiming it would embolden terrorists rather than promote peace.
Supporters of the resolution argued that for the first time, the U.N. had explicitly condemned Hamas’s actions while also demanding accountability from Israel.
The vote comes ahead of a September 22 meeting of world leaders at the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, where several countries, including Britain and other European states, are expected to formally recognize a Palestinian state.
“This is a watershed moment,” one diplomat said after the vote. “The U.N. has spoken clearly: the war must end, and the path to peace lies in two states.”
Source: Reuters
Written By Rodney Mbua
