“Turning point”: World reacts to UN vote calling on Israel to end occupation of Palestine

Occupied Palestine (Quds News Network)- The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) overwhelmingly adopted on Wednesday a resolution calling for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.

The resolution, which is based on an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ), calls for Israel to withdraw from the occupied territories within a year and implement measures such as an arms embargo and sanctions against the Israeli government.

UN member states passed the nonbinding resolution, with 124 votes in favor, 14 against and 43 abstentions.

Palestine

Palestine’s ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, called the vote a turning point “in our struggle for freedom and justice”.

“It sends a clear message that Israel’s occupation must end as soon as possible and that the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination must be realized,” he said.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the resolution and urged countries across the world to take steps to pressure Israel to adhere to it.

“The international consensus over this resolution renews the hopes of our Palestinian people – who are facing a comprehensive aggression and genocide in Gaza and the West Bank, including Jerusalem – to achieve its aspirations of freedom and independence and establish a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital,” he said.

Hamas also said it “welcomes the adoption”, adding that it reflected “the international community’s solidarity with the Palestinian people’s struggle”.

Qatar

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that the adoption of the resolution by a majority of 124 countries clearly reflected the justice of the Palestinian cause, representing broad international recognition of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination as a natural, legal and historical right.

The ministry voiced hopes that all countries would comply with their obligations under international law and implement the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination.

Gulf Cooperation Council

Jasem Mohamed al-Budaiwi, the secretary-general of the GCC – which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates – welcomed the UNGA’s call on Israel to end its occupation of Palestine.

He said it confirmed “the right of the Palestinian people to reclaim their occupied lands” and showed that Israel’s actions, including the expansion of settlements, lack recognition at regional and international levels.

Organization of Islamic Cooperation

The OIC, which comprises 57 mostly Muslim-majority states, said the decision by the UNGA “expresses the international consensus” on the Palestinian right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent and sovereign state.

It also called on the global community to “take individual and collective measures” to ensure that Israel complies with its obligations under international law.

European Union

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement: “The UN General Assembly has forcefully reaffirmed its commitment to the realisation of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including its right to an independent and sovereign State, living side by side in peace and security with Israel, in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly.”

Amnesty International

Secretary-General Agnes Callamard said the resolution “makes crystal clear” that Israel’s 57-year occupation “cannot be allowed to continue any longer”.

“For decades Israel’s unlawful occupation has brought injustice, bloodshed and suffering to Palestinians on a mass scale. Over the past 11 months, the systematic human rights violations that are a hallmark of Israel’s brutal occupation and system of apartheid have drastically intensified,” she said, adding that Israel should comply with the resolution immediately by withdrawing its forces from the occupied West Bank and Gaza and removing its settlers from the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Human Rights Watch

Louis Charbonneau, UN director at the international human rights group, said: “Israel should immediately heed the demand of an overwhelming majority of UN member states.”