The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) voted on Friday to back the \u201cNew York Declaration,\u201d a resolution which seeks to breathe new life into the two-state solution between Israel and Palestine \u2014 without the involvement of Hamas. The text was adopted by 142 votes in favour, 10 against \u2014 including Israel and key ally the United States \u2014 and 12 abstentions. It rebukes Hamas and demands that it surrender its weapons. Although Israel has criticised UN bodies for nearly two years over their failure to rebuke Hamas\u2019s attack on October 7, 2023, the declaration, presented by France and Saudi Arabia, leaves no ambiguity. Formally called the New York Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, the text states that \u201cHamas must free all hostages\u201d and that the UN General Assembly (UNGA) condemns \u201cthe attacks committed by Hamas against civilians on October 7\u201d. It also calls for \u201ccollective action to end the war in Gaza, to achieve a just, peaceful and lasting settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on the effective implementation of the two-state solution\u201d. The declaration, which was already endorsed by the Arab League and co-signed in July by 17 UN member states, including several Arab countries, also goes further than rebuking Hamas, seeking to fully excise it from a role in Gaza. \u201cIn the context of ending the war in Gaza, Hamas must end its rule in Gaza and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority, with international engagement and support, in line with the objective of a sovereign and independent Palestinian State,\u201d the declaration states. The vote precedes an upcoming UN summit co-chaired by Riyadh and Paris on September 22 in New York, in which French President Emmanuel Macron has promised to formally recognise the Palestinian state. \u2018Shield\u2019 against criticism \u201cThe fact that the General Assembly is finally backing a text that condemns Hamas directly is significant\u201d even if \u201cIsraelis will say it is far too little, far too late\u201d, Richard Gowan, UN director at the International Crisis Group, told AFP. \u201cNow at least states supporting the Palestinians can rebuff Israeli accusations that they implicitly condone Hamas,\u201d he said, adding that it \u201coffers a shield against Israeli criticism\u201d. In addition to Macron, several other leaders have announced their intent to formally recognise the Palestinian state during the UN summit. The gestures are seen as a means of increasing pressure on Israel to end the fighting in Gaza. The New York Declaration includes discussion of a \u201cdeployment of a temporary international stabilisation mission\u201d to the battered region under the mandate of the UN Security Council, aiming to support the Palestinian civilian population and facilitate security responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority. Around three-quarters of the 193 UN member states recognise the Palestinian state proclaimed in 1988 by the exiled Palestinian leadership. However, after two years of fighting have ravaged the Gaza Strip, in addition to expanded Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the stated desire by Israeli officials to annex the territory, fears have been growing that the existence of an independent Palestinian state will soon become impossible. Israel\u2019s devastating retaliatory offensive has killed at least 64,656 Palestinians, most of them civilians. Israel has been facing growing international criticism over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza caused by its offensive with Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and experts already declaring its actions in Gaza as a \u201cgenocide\u201d, which Tel Aviv rejects. \u201cWe are going to fulfil our promise that there will be no Palestinian state,\u201d Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Thursday. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, meanwhile, may be prevented from visiting New York for the UN summit after US authorities said they would deny him a visa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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