UN backs four resolutions in favor of Palestinians

UNITED NATIONS－The UN General Assembly on Tuesday adopted four pro-Palestine resolutions that uphold the pre-1967 borders between Palestine and Israel, and renewed the mandates of two UN Palestine bodies.

Delegates from more than 20 member states debated the question of Palestine before the assembly voted on the four draft resolutions, one by one.

All the proposals were passed, with two of them by an overwhelming majority.

A resolution titled "Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine" won the most support (147 votes in favor, with 7 against and 13 abstentions). It called upon all states not to recognize any changes to the pre-1967 borders, including with regard to Jerusalem, other than those agreed by the parties through negotiations.

The resolution urged all states not to render aid or assistance to illegal settlement activities by Israel in its occupied Palestinian territory, and to ensure accountability consistent with international law.

A resolution titled "Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People" requested the UN committee to redouble international efforts aimed at establishing an expanded multilateral framework for the revitalization of efforts to achieve a peaceful settlement of the Palestine question.

It invited all governments and organizations to extend their cooperation to the committee in the performance of its tasks.

The two other resolutions, "Division for Palestinian Rights of the Secretariat" and "Special Information Programme on the Question of Palestine of the Department of Global Communications", renewed the mandate of the two UN bodies that their titles refer to.

At the start of Tuesday's debate, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People presented its report to the General Assembly.

The committee "underscores the responsibility of states and private entities not to contribute to violations of Palestinian human rights, in particular with respect to settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem," said Adela Raz, rapporteur of the committee.

She said the committee deems unilateral decisions by UN member states to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and the transfer of embassies in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as null and void.

"It calls upon the member states to rescind those decisions and respect the historic status quo of the holy sites in Jerusalem, and to preserve the legal, demographic and historical multicultural and multi-religious status of the city," she said.