“Today’s vote at the United Nations on the membership of Palestine is a test for countries which claim to be advocating human rights and to see if countries such as the United States and some European states will once again succumb to the pressures exerted by the Zionist regime [of Israel] to violate the rights of the people of Palestine,” said Hossein Sobhaninia, a member of Iran’s Majlis Presiding Board on Thursday.
He pointed out that, “The people of Palestine as indigenous residents of their country should have the rights equal to other nations and membership in the United Nations is their natural and legal right.”
The Iranian lawmaker further expressed hope that countries which have so far violated the rights of the Palestinian people, would vote in favor of upgrading the status of Palestine at the United Nations.
On November 26, acting Palestinian Authority Chief Mahmoud Abbas submitted a draft resolution to the UN General Assembly, requesting the upgrading of the status of Palestine to “non-member observer state” at the United Nations. The UN assembly will vote on the bid today, November 29.
Palestinians need a majority vote from the 193 members of the General Assembly to win the bid.
Currently, as many as 130 nations, which already recognize Palestine as a sovereign state, are in favor of the upgrade.
Washington and London are against the proposal but they cannot block it because they cannot use their veto power at the General Assembly. The stance has put Washington and London on a collision course with the rest of the world.
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