UN Security Council Issues Formal Statement Denouncing Israeli Settlements

Facts

• The UN Security Council (UNSC) on Monday unanimously approved a presidential statement strongly criticizing Israel's continued construction and expansion of settlements, a move that angered Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu due to its support from the US.¹
• This comes after multiple reports citing diplomatic sources claimed that the Palestinian Authority had dropped pursuit of a UNSC draft resolution to condemn Israeli settlement activity following discussions with Washington.²
• The United Arab Emirates, which had outlined the resolution on Wednesday in coordination with Palestinian officials, reportedly told the UNSC that it would not call a vote on Monday. It made the announcement citing 'positive talks between the parties.'³
• Over the weekend, the Palestinians reputedly agreed to backtrack on their efforts to bring the resolution to a vote in exchange for US support to the symbolic statement, with Israel vowing to temporarily halt unilateral actions in the West Bank.⁴
• The Biden admin. stepped in on this quarrel between Israel and the Palestinian Authority amid fears that the situation could escalate ahead of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.⁵
• Tensions, which have risen amid the deaths of 11 Israelis and nearly 50 Palestinians since the start of the year, further increased earlier this month when Israel approved the legalization of nine outposts, prompting the Palestinian Authority to push for a UNSC resolution condemning the decision.⁶

Sources: ¹FOX News, ²Al Jazeera, ³Reuters, ⁴Axios, ⁵Haaretz.com and ⁶The times of israel.

Narratives

• Pro-Palestine, as provided by Middle east eye. Israel's far-right government has taken actions so abusive in the occupied West Bank that even its closest ally, the US, agreed to support this UNSC presidential statement. As its persistent settlement activities continue to disrupt peace and put the two-state solution at risk, isolating the country is a step in the right direction to try to prevent the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from reaching a breaking point.
• Pro-Israel, as provided by Jerusalem post. It is disgraceful that the Biden admin. has failed to show solidarity with Israel amid yet more prejudice against the nation from the UN. By backing this one-sided statement, Washington is turning a blind eye to the Palestinian Authority's hideous pay-for-slay policy while denying the rights of Jews to live in their historic homeland. The US should have never supported this biased statement.

Predictions