THE UK has abstained on a major UN vote demanding that Israel ends its occupation of Gaza and the West Bank.
The United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to adopt a resolution calling for Israel to “bring to an end without delay its unlawful presence” in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
It also called for Israel to comply with international law and withdraw its military forces, immediately cease all new settlement activity, evacuate all settlers from occupied land, and dismantle parts of the separation wall it constructed inside the occupied West Bank.
The resolution stems from the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in July, in which the court declared that Israel’s continued presence “is unlawful”, and that “all States are under an obligation not to recognize” the decades-long occupation.
Some 124 nations voted in favour, with 14 against and 43 abstaining – the UK among them.
Justifying the abstention, the UK’s ambassador to the UN, Barbara Woodward said: “The United Kingdom has done so not because we do not support the central findings of the ICJ’s Advisory Opinion but rather because the resolution does not provide sufficient clarity to effectively advance our shared aim of a peace premised on a negotiated two-state solution: a safe and secure Israel alongside a safe and secure Palestinian state.”
Commenting on the UK’s abstention Tim Bierley, a campaigner at Global Justice Now, said that the UK has “again shown complete disregard for the ongoing suffering of Palestinians forced to live under military-enforced racial discrimination”.
He added: "The vast majority of countries have made it clear: Israel’s occupation of Palestine must end, and all countries have a definite duty not to aid or assist its continuation.
“To stay on the right side of international law, the UK’s dealings with Israel must drastically change, including closing all loopholes in its partial arms ban and revoking any trade or investment relations that might assist the occupation.”
