UN vote last chance on 2-state solution — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told the U.N. General Assembly before a historic vote on Thursday that it "is being asked today to issue the birth certificate of Palestine."
The Palestinians were certain to win U.N. recognition as a state, but Israel and the United States warned it could delay hopes of achieving an independent Palestinian state through peace talks with Israel.
Abbas said the vote is the last chance to save the two-state solution.
Associated Press/Richard Drew - in United Nations General Assembly,
Thursday, Nov. 29, 2012. In a statement Thursday, Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas appealed to all nations to vote in favor of the
Palestinians
Israel's U.N. ambassador, Ron Prosor, warned the General Assembly that "the Palestinians are turning their backs on peace" and that the U.N. can't break the 4,000-year-old bond between the people of Israel and the land of Israel.
The General Assembly vote was certain to succeed, with most of the 193 member states sympathetic to the Palestinians. Several key countries, including France, recently announced they would support the move to elevate the Palestinians from the status of U.N. observer to nonmember observer state.
Jubilant Palestinians crowded around outdoor screens and television sets at home Thursday to watch the United Nations vote.
Palestinians say a successful vote will strengthen their hand in future talks with Israel, which has lambasted the recognition bid as an attempt to bypass such negotiations.
The vote would grant Abbas an overwhelming international endorsement for his key position: establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, the territories captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war. With Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu opposed to a pullback to the 1967 lines, this should strengthen Abbas' hand if peace talks resume.
The U.N. bid also could help Abbas restore some of his standing, which has been eroded by years of standstill in peace efforts. His rival, Hamas, deeply entrenched in Gaza, has seen its popularity rise after an Israeli offensive on targets linked to the Islamic militant group there earlier this month. ( Associated Press )
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