UNGA starts session on draft resolution demanding end to Israel’s illegal presence in Palestinian territories

NEY WORK: The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Wednesday started its 10th special emergency session to vote on a draft resolution formally demanding an end to Israel's illegal presence in the occupied Palestinian territories. Submitted by the State of Palestine, the draft resolution formally demands an end to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories within 12 months. It is based on the ICJ's advisory opinion, which found that Israel's decades-long occupation of the Palestinian territories was "unlawful", and that its "near-complete separation" of people in the occupied West Bank breached international laws concerning "racial segregation" and "apartheid", and grounded in international law. As stated by Palestine's ambassador to the United Nations, Riyad Masnour, the draft resolution 'focuses . . . on the obligations of Israel, all States and the United Nations and other international organizations in accordance with international law. It also calls for a number of individual and collective actions to uphold the law and implement the relevant United Nations resolutions on the question of Palestine.' Source: Palestine News and Information Agency – WAFA