Rabat – The UN General Assembly (GA) approved a resolution on Wednesday to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Nakba, with 90 countries voting for, 30 voting against, and 47 abstaining.
The Nakba refers to the forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in 1948, right before the formation of Israel.
In addition to recognizing the Nakba’s anniversary, the GA voted in favor of renaming a journalism training program after Shireen Abu Akleh, the Palestinian Al Jazeera reporter who was killed by Israeli forces earlier this year.
A third resolution called for a “halt to all settlement activities, land confiscation, and home demolitions, for the release of prisoners and for an end to arbitrary arrests and detentions.”
Another resolution titled “The Syrian Golan” declared Israel’s decision to impose its jurisdiction on the Golan region null and called on them to rescind it. Five texts related to Palestine and Israel were adopted by the Assembly.
The resolutions were immediately condemned by Israel, accusing the assembly of pinning all of the Middle East’s problems on the country.
“What would you say if the international community celebrated the establishment of your country as a disaster?” Israeli ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan said. “What a disgrace.”
The Palestinian envoy to the UN, Riyad Mansour, warned the UN that the two-state solution was at immediate risk unless the international body pressures Israel to recognize Palestinians’ rights.
“Anybody serious about the two-state solution must help salvage the Palestinian state,” he said, emphasizing that the alternative was the current regime of “colonialism and apartheid.”
Back in May, activists praised a US Congress bill that would recognize the Nakba, saying that the mere fact that the bill had been introduced demonstrates a shift in the American stance towards Israel.
