The decision by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) to raise the Palestinian flag outside UN headquarters in New York, Geneva and Vienna is a victory for Palestinians in their intense diplomatic campaign for recognition of their state. The decision was widely welcomed by all Palestinian nationalist and Islamist forces and factions, who described it as “another victory” for the Palestinian cause and the struggle of the Palestinian people to realise their legitimate rights of freedom, liberation and creating their own independent state. They called for building momentum on this symbolic step that has significant political implications, along with other gains made at the UN, to implement UN resolutions relating to the rights of the Palestinian people of returning to their land, self-determination, and an independent sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. The UNGA agreed in the early hours Friday with a majority of 119 votes for, eight against — including the US and Israel — and 45 abstentions to raise the Palestinian flag next to the flags of other world countries outside UN headquarters. The resolution states that the UNGA will raise the flags of observer states that are non-UN members outside the world body's offices and headquarters. Also, to allow these states to have missions at UN headquarters, and that the UN secretary general should take the necessary steps to implement the resolution within 20 days of it being adopted. This will coincide with the visit by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to New York to participate in the annual UNGA where he will address the assembly 30 September. Abbas described the decision as “an achievement and key step” for the Palestinian cause, but cautioned not to blow it out of proportion. During an address at the first Creativity Forum in Palestine on Saturday, he said: “We do not want to exaggerate what we did; it is one stone in building our nation and an important step. The world now understands the affairs and demands of the Palestinian people. And as we raised the flag of Palestine at the UN, we will raise it over Jerusalem.” He added that eight countries did not support the flag resolution, but the number of countries that voted against recognition of the State of Palestine was nine. This means the number of those refusing to recognise Palestinian rights is decreasing, while that supporting Palestine is rising. The world has started to understand the plight of the Palestinian people and their demands, Abbas said. Palestine became a “non-member observer” at the UN on 29 November 2012, after 138 out of 193 states voted in the UNGA on the issue. Since then, the State of Palestine has joined several UN agencies, entities and agreements, most recently the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague in April 2015. However, it still does not have the privileges of being a full-fledged member of the UN. Abbas commented on the absence of supportive votes, including an Arab state he did not name, and explained that this was because this Arab country cannot pay its dues to the UN and thus could not vote — not because it does not support Palestine. According to sources in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) general secretariat, the only Muslim state that did not vote out of the 57 members was Cameroon. The source added that four Islamic countries were absent, including Yemen. It is unclear why since it was one of the sponsors and supporters of the proposal since the start. The other three countries that did not vote were Uganda, Guinea-Bissau and Turkmenistan, all for unknown reasons. Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation's (PLO) Executive Committee, described the UN resolution as a victory for freedom, justice and independence, and a blow to occupation, settlement building and oppression, according to a statement by his office. Erekat said that raising the flag of Palestine is not only a symbolic move, but also a vote against plans by the Israeli government to build settlements and impose a fait accompli on the ground. “We all remember the symbolism of raising the Egyptian flag over the East bank of the Suez Canal in 1973, and the symbolism of raising the US flag over Iwo Jima in the Pacific Ocean during World War II,” stated Erekat. “There is also great symbolism in raising the Palestinian flag as the 195th flag, equal to the rest of the world's countries.” He asserted that, “the key to victory over terrorism and fanaticism is for the Palestinian people to be free.” Meanwhile, Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip despite the formation of a consensus government in June 2014, expressed appreciation and gratitude to all countries that supported the resolution. The group called for building on this symbolic step and continuing efforts to empower the Palestinian people with their right to freedom and self-determination. The first deputy of the Palestinian speaker of parliament, Ahmed Bahr, who is also a leading Hamas figure, said: “We welcome all steps that support the right of the Palestinian people to restore their usurped right and achieve their aspiration for freedom.” He called on the world community to take tangible steps to end criminal acts by Israel against Palestinians. He urged the UN to shoulder its responsibilities towards the Palestinian cause, and support the rights of Palestinian refugees to take back their land and return home. Bahr added the Palestinian resistance are the ones who will achieve true Palestinian sovereignty by raising the flag of Palestine over the walls of Jerusalem after its liberation from Israeli occupation. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Maliki, meanwhile, described the decision as “a historic moment”, adding that, “the countries that voted for the resolution stuck to their principles, and by supporting the resolution sent a message of hope to the Palestinian people.” Prominent countries that voted for the resolution along with Arab countries include Bangladesh, Brazil, Cambodia, Cuba, Chad, El Salvador, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mali, Niger, Pakistan and Turkey. Al-Maliki urged countries that abstained from voting or voted against “to revise their positions, apply their principles, and stop using double standards”. He said he hoped “for the State of Palestine to become a full-fledged member of the UN”. Israel, the US, Canada and Australia voted against raising the Palestinian flag, while France, Russia and China voted for the resolution. “Raising the Palestinian flag does not compensate for negotiations, or bring the two sides closer to peace,” stated US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power. European positions towards the decision varied despite intense efforts to unite their ranks. France, Sweden, Italy and Spain voted for the resolution while Germany, the UK, Austria, Finland, Holland and Cyprus abstained from voting. France's UN Ambassador Francois Delattre said: “This flag is a strong symbol and a spark of hope (for the Palestinian people),” at a time when the peace process is at a halt and when Israel continues its “illegal settlement building in the occupied West Bank”. Tawfiq Abu Shumar, a Palestinian political analyst, stated: “It is a good decision and has symbolic meaning that the world community is seeking to create a Palestinian state — even if the symbol is merely a piece of cloth.” Abu Shumar described the resolution as a “crushing defeat” for Israel that recently “tried to convince many UNGA members against this move”. He continued: “Israel was defeated in the UN. It rejected this symbolic move because it harms its interests and strips its legitimacy on the global stage. This analysis is noticeable in all Hebrew media since the resolution passed.” Abu Shumar added that, “Israel is disturbed by the decision because there is an overall world opinion that believes in the right of Palestinians to establish their own state, and many countries — even major ones — want to recognise Palestine as a country. This boosts the Palestinian position and Arab diplomatic moves, making this symbolic accomplishment a step forward that must be followed up with diligence.” He stressed that, “follow-up is more important than the symbolism and celebration of the decision. We need to know which countries voted against the resolution, who abstained, and identify their rationale. This is what Israel does through its active ambassador at the UN, Ron Prosor.” According to Israeli media, Prosor blamed the Palestinians for taking the UN hostage and denounced what he described as “a worthless gesture”. Prosor, who will leave his post soon, said: “This UNGA would vote the world is flat if the Palestinians say so. The only way [for Palestinians] to have a country is direct negotiations [with Israel].” Israel Radio quoted Prosor as saying that the UN does not play much of a role in resolving conflicts because of its “composition that includes despotic dictatorships”. He accused the UN of being “institutionally unfair” to Israel and claimed resolutions condemning Israel are frequent and automatically adopted. “The UN allows Palestinians to continue their hollow media manoeuvring without accountability or directing them to the proper path that leads to peace,” he argued. Prosor was confident his successor, Likud's former minister Danny Danon, who comes from the fanatical right-wing camp, would succeed in his mission in New York. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu decided in August to appoint former minister of science Danon ambassador to the UN, a move that was criticised inside Israel as the UN needs diplomacy and self-restraint — neither being in Danon's character. He is known for his offensive statements, even against Netanyahu himself. Danon also holds strong anti-Palestinian positions, especially against Palestinians in Israel (1948 Arabs who are Israeli citizens). He demands they pledge allegiance to Israel and recognise it as the state for the Jewish people. As well as his extreme hatred of Palestinians, Danon rejects the two-state solution and wants Israel to continue controlling and occupying the majority of the West Bank, granting only self-governance to larger Palestinian clusters.
