India has voted in favour of a United Nations resolution endorsing the “New York Declaration” on the peaceful settlement of the Palestine issue and the implementation of the two-state solution. The resolution, introduced by France, was adopted on Friday with the support of 142 nations, while 10 voted against it and 12 abstained. Among those opposing were Israel, the United States, Argentina, and Hungary.
The declaration was first circulated during a high-level international conference at the UN headquarters in July, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia. It commits world leaders to “take collective action to end the war in Gaza, to achieve a just, peaceful and lasting settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on the effective implementation of the two-state solution, and to build a better future for Palestinians, Israelis and all peoples of the region.”
The resolution calls on Israel to make a “clear public commitment” to the two-state solution, ensuring a sovereign and viable Palestinian state. It also urges Israel to “immediately end violence and incitement against Palestinians, halt all settlement, land grabs and annexation activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, renounce any annexation project or settlement policy, and put an end to settlers’ violence.”
The declaration reaffirms the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and warns that without concrete steps toward the two-state solution and international guarantees, “the conflict will deepen and regional peace will remain elusive.”
“Recent developments have highlighted, once again, and more than ever, the terrifying human toll and the grave implications for regional and international peace and security of the persistence of the Middle East conflict,” the declaration stated.
It also made clear that “the war in Gaza must end now,” stressing that Gaza is an “integral part of a Palestinian state and must be unified with the West Bank,” rejecting any “occupation, siege, territorial reduction, or forced displacement.”
