Palestinians See Friendly UN for Statehood, Unswayed by U.S.

[Purveyor]

As the Palestinian leaders prepare to plead their case for statehood recognition at the United Nations, they see it as an encouraging sign that Arab nations will be heading both the Security Council and the General Assembly.

“The stars are aligned in our favor and this happy coincidence just proves history is on our side,” Riyad Mansour, the Palestinians’ UN envoy charged to rally support for a resolution upgrading Palestinian UN status, said in a Sept. 9 interview in New York.

Lebanon, the only Arab country in the 15-member Security Council, presides this month in the group. Qatar takes over the yearlong presidency of the 193-member General Assembly next week, shortly before Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas will walk on the podium to tell attending world leaders why Palestine should join the ranks of member states. Israel was accepted into the fold in 1948.

For the 76-year-old Palestinian leader, scheduled to address the General Assembly on Sept. 23, it’s a congenial atmosphere, even though that does little to improve the odds of a Palestinian-state resolution getting through the Security Council, where the U.S. has said it will deploy its veto.

MORE...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-12/palestinians-see-a-friendly-un-for-statehood-unswayed-by-u-s-.html

[hack89]

1. What happens when Hamas refuses statehood?

this could be interesting - a three state solution? On a serious note, everyone is cheering that Israel is being put in a tight spot while ignore the real possibility that this bid will reveal rifts in the Palestinians that may be fatal to their cause. What if Hamas decides that Gaza will not be part of the Palestine state?

[holdencaufield]

2. List of things...

...that this very symbolic vote will not do for the Palestinians.

-- It won't have any weight in the Security Council

-- It won't decide borders

-- It won't remove or stop the expansion of settlements in the West Bank

-- It won't grant right-of-return to the millions of grandchildren of Palestinian refugees

-- It won't settle the question of Jerusalem

-- It won't settle the rift between Hamas and the PA

-- It won't stop the naval blockade of Gaza

-- It won't force Israel to the bargaining table

-- It won't stop retaliatory strikes against the Palestinians for attacks on Israeli civilians.



All of those things (except the blood feud between Hamas and the PA) will require negation with and the cooperation of Israel to resolve. What it will do is drive a wedge further between peoples who are already pretty far apart. So, I'm not clear why so many here are cheering it on.

[shira]

4. Doesn't matter what happens with Palestinians. Anything anti-Israel is good. n/t

[holdencaufield]

3. Deleting Dupe