NEW YORK - Arab Today
A majority of the world’s nations defied the US Administration on Thursday, denouncing President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
In a collective act of defiance toward Washington, the United Nations General Assembly voted 128, including the United Arab Emirates, to 9, with 35 abstentions, to demand that the United States rescind its Dec. 6 declaration on Al Quds.
The UN General Assembly meeting today started with a statement delivered by Yemen's delegate to the UN, Ambassador Khalid Hussein Al Yamani, on behalf of the Arab Group at the UN, where he affirmed that the US decision on moving its embassy to Al Quds is null and void and flies in the face of all relevant UN resolutions.
For his part, Nabil Abu Rdeneh, a senior adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, expressed thanks for the countries that voted in favor of the UN resolution countering the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital "despite all the pressure exerted on them," as he put it.
Abu Rdeneh appeared to be referring to a threat by President Donald Trump to cut off U.S. funding to countries that support the resolution.
The Palestinian senior official, in a statement Thursday, affirmed that the vote reflects the support the Palestinians enjoy in the international community. He said that the Palestinians will continue their efforts in international forums to help create a Palestinian state.