UN General Assembly votes to back two-state solution for Israel and Palestine
The resolution supports the recognition of an independent Palestinian state and envisions a two-state solution. It condemns the attack by Hamas on southern Israel on Oct. 7. It also condemns Israel's siege and starvation in Gaza, which produced a humanitarian catastrophe.
The United Nations General Assembly overwhemingly backed a nonbinding solution on Friday supporting a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine, hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the idea of a Palestinian state.
Out of the 193-member world body, 142 countries voted in favour on the New York Declaration, 10 against and 12 abstained.
The resolution, presented by France and Saudi Arabia, envisions the Palestinian Authority (PA) governing and in control of all Palestinian territory, with a transitional administrative committee immediately established after a ceasefire in Gaza.
“Hamas must end its rule in Gaza and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority,” the declaration says, adding that it must also free all hostages.
It also suggests the deployment of a UN-backed mission to protect Palestinian civilians and provide safety guarantees for both Palestinian and Israel civilians, support the peaceful transfer of governing to the PA and monitor the ceasefire and a future peace agreement.
The seven-page document condemns “the attacks committed by Hamas against civilians” in southern Israel on Oct 7 in 2023, when Hamas-led militants killed roughly 1,200 people, many of them civilians, and took 250 hostages. Of those, 50 are still being held, including about 20 who are believed to be alive.
It also condemns Israel's attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure in Gaza and its "siege and starvation, which has produced a devastating humanitarian catastrophe and protection crisis." Following Oct 7, a subsequent Israeli offensive has to date killed more than 64,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry whose figure does not distinguish between fighters and civilians. The figures are repeatedly cited by international institutions, such as the UN.
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