The United Nations voted overwhelmingly Friday to let Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas deliver his speech virtually at next week’s UN General Assembly after the US banned him and some 80 top PA officials from attending the high-level New York gathering.
The resolution, which expressed concern and regret about the US decision, was supported by 145 countries, with six countries abstaining and five, including Israel and the US, voting against. The PA was also permitted under the resolution to submit a pre-recorded video or participate via teleconference in a Saudi- and French-hosted meeting at the General Assembly on Monday about the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Several Western nations have announced ahead of the meeting that they would recognize Palestinian statehood. In protest of the announcements, the administration of US President Donald Trump said last month that it would bar Abbas and other PA officials from attending. The text of the resolution adopted Friday suggested that the US decision may have violated the 1947 UN Headquarters Agreement — a charge Washington denies. (Read More)
