The Dhaka Times Desk This time, the United Nations has really passed a historic proposal. The UN Security Council has passed a resolution demanding an end to Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories. The proposal outlawed the settlement.
The United States has always vetoed such proposals in the past but did not veto this time. The resolution proposed by Egypt was supposed to be voted on last Thursday. However, under the pressure of the newly elected US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Egypt withdrew the proposal at the last moment.
Its co-sponsors New Zealand, Malaysia, Venezuela and Senegal were adamant in raising the resolution, with the Security Council voting on it on Friday.
14 of the 15 members of the Security Council voted in favor of this resolution. However, the United States abstained from voting. Earlier in 2011, the United States vetoed such a proposal.
This is the first time in the last 8 years that the UN Security Council has adopted a resolution on the issue of Israel and Palestine.
Trump and Netanyahu had previously called on the Obama administration to veto the proposal. Egypt withdrew this proposal at the last minute when Trump called Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
However, in the end, this proposal, which was passed by the UN Security Council, demanded Israel to stop settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem, since 1967.
The proposal states that the cessation of settlements in the occupied territories is essential to sustain the 'two state solution' initiative. These settlements have no legal basis and are gross violations of international law.
It should be noted that an Israeli diplomat, who did not wish to be named, alleged that the role of the current US President Barack Obama and the Secretary of State John Kerry is behind the passing of this proposal.
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