Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan shredded the UN charter in an outrageous protest at the United Nations General Assembly, just before it passed a resolution for the full membership of Palestine.
During the UNGA meeting on Friday, a resolution was passed with a resounding majority of 143 votes in favour, asking the Security Council to make Palestine a full member, a move supported by India. However, 25 countries abstained and nine nations, including the US and Israel, voted against it.
The Israeli envoy, called the resolution a “clear violation” of the UN Charter, stating that it subverted the US veto in the Security Council last month. Erdan said he is “holding up the mirror” for General Assembly members while shredding the UN Charter.
“This day will go down in infamy. I want the entire world to remember this moment, this immoral act…today I want to hold up a mirror for you, so you can see what exactly you are inflicting upon the UN Charter with this destructive vote. You are shredding the UN Charter with your own hands,” he added.
Referring to Hamas, he also alleged the UN for opening the doors to the ‘modern-day Nazis’ by the resolution. Erdan later posted on X, “At the end of my speech, I tore the ‘UN Charter’ to pieces, to illustrate what the assembly is doing in its support for the entry of Palestinian terrorism into the UN”.
The proposal was initially tabled by the United Arab Emirates to grant new privileges to the Palestinian Authority in its current capacity as a non-member observer state. Meanwhile, Palestinian envoy, Riyad Mansour said he will now apply for full membership from the Security Council.
Israel’s foreign minister Israel Katz also condemned the resolution, describing it as an “absurd decision” and “the structural bias of the UN”. He further added, “The message that the UN is sending to our suffering region: violence pays off.”
The US has issued a warning that it will probably veto any request for membership by Palestine in the Security Council, similar to its veto last month, to prevent a UNSC resolution from granting permanent membership to Palestine. For a draft resolution to be adopted, the UNSC must have at least nine members in favour and none of its permanent members, including China, France, Russia, the UK, and the US, using their veto power, according to the UN document.
