PLO Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi condemned Tuesday night’s UN Security Council abstentions on a motion to end the Israeli occupation of Palestine as ‘outrageously shameful’.
‘It is ironic that while the United Nations designated 2014 as the International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the resolution failed to pass as an indication of a failure of will by some members of the international community,’ she said in a statement.
‘Furthermore, all the articles of the resolution are consistent with declared American policy, international law, UN resolutions, and the requirements of peace.
‘The extent to which the US has gone to protect Israeli impunity and lawlessness and to enable its criminal behaviour is disgraceful and dangerous.’
Ashrawi’s statement came as Palestinian leaders reacted to news that the UN Security Council had failed to pass a bill calling for peace within a year and a 2017 deadline to end the Israeli occupation.
Palestine Authority leaders focused their anger on those states which failed to support the bid.
‘Those countries (Lithuania, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Korea, and the UK) that abstained demonstrated a lack of political will to hold Israel accountable and to act in accordance with the global rule of law and international humanitarian law and their own avowed principles,’ Ashrawi said in her statement.
Many had expected that the resolution would come close to passing but would be blocked by a US veto.
But the large number of abstentions meant that the US did not even have to exercise its veto to kill the bill.
‘We extend our gratitude and appreciation to all the countries, in particular France and Luxembourg, that upheld their principles and voted in favour of the resolution,’ Ashrawi said.
‘We strongly urge all governments worldwide to officially recognise an independent Palestine on 1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital and to support our multilateral efforts of resorting to all international venues to seek the protection and empowerment of Palestine and accountability for Israel.
‘This is the inevitable next step given such an abysmal failure of will on the part of some members of the international community and the collusion with Israel by others,’ she added.
Israel’s government summoned the French ambassador on Wednesday over his country’s support for the Palestinian motion setting an end date for the Israeli occupation.
Foreign ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon said that the ambassador, Patrick Maisonnave, was being summoned to the ministry in Jerusalem later in the day.
France along with China and Russia were among the eight countries which voted in favour of the text on Tuesday, but the resolution fell short of winning the nine ‘yes’ votes necessary for adoption within the 15-member Security Council.
• The Israeli Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected an appeal to prevent the demolition of the homes of four Palestinians from East Jerusalem who allegedly attacked Israelis in West Jerusalem in recent months.
‘As usual, Israel ended the year 2014 by rejecting the appeal of the al-Akkari family and the families of other martyrs … basing its decision on the strategy of the Israeli ministry of defence according to which demolition orders must be carried out in order to achieve deterrence,’ lawyer Midhat Dibah, who defended the al-Akkari family, said.
