The United Nations (UN) General Assembly adopted a resolution on Thursday rejecting US President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and his plans to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
A total of 128 countries voted in favor of the resolution, with nine countries — including the US and Israel — voting against, and 35 countries voting to abstain, including Canada, Australia and Mexico.
The vote came after a series of threats by Trump and Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, who said that Washington would remember which countries “disrespected” America by voting against it. Leading up to the vote, President Trump had promised to “take names” and possibly cut donor funding to those countries who voted against it.
Mahmoud Abbas: The vote "reaffirms once again that the just Palestinian cause enjoys the support of international law, and no decision by any party can change the reality" https://t.co/brS5tRgYIX
— Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) December 22, 2017
Among the few countries that voted against the resolution in line with Trump, were four Pacific Islands — Nauru, Micronesia, Palau, and the Marshall Islands — that have a collective population of fewer than 200,000.
Micronesia, Palau, and the Marshall Islands had been American colonies and are still partly governed by mutual agreements with the US.
The office of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the resolution, saying “the decision once again reflects the international community’s position with the Palestinian people, which did not give way to being threatened or blackmailed.”
On #AJNewsgrid: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas calls on Europe to play a bigger role in Middle East peace efforts, a day after the UN Jerusalem vote. Ask your Qs ?https://t.co/6kgBJ2awXZ pic.twitter.com/3R5oH3pRuP
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) December 22, 2017
Presidential Spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeinah said in a statement that “this decision reaffirms once again that the just Palestinian cause enjoys the support of international community, and no decisions made by any side could change the reality, that Jerusalem is an occupied territory under international law.”
He added, “We will continue our efforts at the United Nations and all international forums to put an end to this occupation and to establish our Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
(Maan, PC, Social Media)
