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 castigated 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.
But 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. “This aggressive US policy towards Palestine, its people and their legitimate rights represents a blatant assault on international law and encouragement for the continuation of the genocidal war against our people […] which push the region even further to the brink,” said the office of its President Mahmoud Abbas in a statement.
The draft resolution presented by Algeria which recommended Palestinian membership received 12 votes for, 1 against and 2 abstentions (United Kingdom and Switzerland).
“A failure to act would be a serious and unforgivable error. Not waking up today would allow the continuation of injustice and impunity, an eternal shame,” said Algerian Ambassador Amar Bendjama just before the vote.
“Today is a sad day,” said the new Chinese ambassador Fu Cong, expressing his “disappointment” with the American veto. “The dream of the Palestinian people has been destroyed.”
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 continued to repeat in recent weeks that its position “has not changed” since 2011, when the request for membership presented by the President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas was cut short in the face of American opposition, even before reaching the Council stage.
“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 American 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 is examining the Palestinian request that their ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan deemed “immoral”.
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 193 UN member states (137 according to the Palestinian Authority’s count) unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state.
“On the edge of the precipice”
In this context, the UN Secretary General painted a frightening picture of the situation in the Middle East before the Security Council.
“The Middle East is on the precipice. The past few days have seen a dangerous escalation, through words and actions,” said Antonio Guterres.
“A miscalculation, a bad communication, 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,” launched the Secretary General, repeating his condemnation in particular of Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel last weekend.
“It is high time to put an end to the bloody cycle of reprisals,” he pleaded, calling to “move the region away from the precipice”.
“Starting with Gaza” where “six and a half months of Israeli military operations have created a humanitarian hell,” he lamented, describing two million Palestinians enduring “death, destruction, denial of humanitarian aid vital.”
The war was triggered by the attack carried out on October 7 against Israel by Hamas commandos infiltrated from Gaza, which led to the death of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP report established from official Israeli data.
Israeli retaliatory operations in the Gaza Strip left 33,970 dead, mainly civilians, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health.