The fourth committee of the UN General Assembly voted in favor of the move on Friday by a margin of 98 to 17 with 52 abstentions. It will be brought to the full General Assembly for formal approval, likely next month. The resolution, titled “Israeli practices and settlement activities affecting the rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied territories,” was one of several that focused on the conflict during the session. It calls on the Hague-based ICJ to “urgently issue an advisory opinion” on Israel’s “prolonged occupation, settlement and annexation of Palestinian territory.” In a statement on Saturday, Lapid said Israel “strongly rejects the Palestinian resolution … This is another unilateral Palestinian move that undermines the basic principles for resolving the conflict and could damage any chance for a future process.” Get The Times of Israel Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories By signing up, you agree to the terms “The Palestinians want to replace negotiations with unilateral steps. They are using the United Nations again to attack Israel,” he said. He said the move “will not change the reality on the ground, nor will it help the Palestinian people in any way. It can even lead to escalation. Supporting this move is a prize for terrorist organizations and the campaign against Israel. The Prime Minister expressed his gratitude to the countries that voted against the resolution and to those that abstained. The prime minister called on “all countries that supported yesterday’s proposal to reconsider their position and oppose it when it is voted on in the General Assembly.” Outgoing Defense Minister Benny Gantz called the request “disconnected from reality” and echoed Lapid’s sentiment that it would damage the prospects of future negotiations to end the conflict. Defense Minister Benny Gantz speaks during a special plenary session commemorating the 27th anniversary of the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, in the Knesset, November 6, 2022. (Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90) “Palestinians taking action at the Hague tribunal is an own goal that will remove them from any political achievement,” Gantz tweeted. “The UN’s intention to allow this will only harm stability in the region and the ability to reach consensus in the future,” he added. The fourth committee of the UN General Assembly votes on measures to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at UN headquarters in New York on Friday, November 11, 2022. (AP/Jeenah Moon) The UN resolution also calls for an investigation into Israeli measures “aimed at changing the demographic composition, character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem” and says Israel has adopted “discriminatory legislation and measures”. The resolution asks the court to weigh the conflict according to international law and the UN Charter. The court, a UN body, is separate from the International Criminal Court, which is also based in The Hague. The ICJ last issued an advisory opinion on the conflict in 2004. Countries that voted against the resolution were Israel, Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Italy, Germany, several Pacific Island nations, and the United States. Many European countries were far away. ???????? votes today against the unilateral UN resolution “Israeli practices”. We will never accept the denial of Jewish ties to the Temple Mount. Also, we prefer the dialogue of both sides to the unilateral involvement of the International Court of Justice @CIJ_ICJ in the Middle East peace process. — Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs (@CzechMFA) November 11, 2022 Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine and the United Arab Emirates voted in favor. Israel’s UN ambassador Gilad Erdan criticized the measure at the committee hearing, calling it part of a “long line of anti-Israeli resolutions.” “The only purpose is to demonize Israel and absolve the Palestinians of responsibility,” Erdan said, adding that the resolution “destroys any hope of a resolution.” The resolution gives the Palestinians “the perfect excuse to continue boycotting the negotiating table,” Erdan said. It also attacked the resolution for referring to Jerusalem’s Temple Mount only by its Arabic name, Haram al-Sharif. UN delegates vote on a resolution requesting the opinion of the International Court of Justice on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on November 11, 2022. (Screenshot, used in accordance with clause 27a of the Copyright Act) The Temple Mount is the holiest place for Jews as the site of the ancient temples, and the third holiest site in Islam as the site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The resolution also refers to the Temple Mount as part of the “Occupied Palestinian Territories, including East Jerusalem.” The lies and hypocrisy of the Palestinians knows no bounds: are they the ones who have rejected every peace initiative or peace plan since 1947, and are now using the excuse that the conflict has not been resolved to turn to the Hague Tribunal? This conflict was not resolved because of their support for terrorism, because of their hatred and their refusal of peace. Watch the segment» pic.twitter.com/gNkHExXxqt — Ambassador Gilad Erdan (@giladerdan1) November 11, 2022 The Palestinian delegation to the UN said in response to the resolution: “Our people deserve freedom. Our people have a right to freedom.” Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki praised the resolution in a statement, calling it a “diplomatic and legal breakthrough” and hoping it would “open a new era to hold Israel accountable for its war crimes.” The United States’ representative on the committee, Richard Mills, expressed “serious concerns” about the resolution, saying it would “increase mistrust” around the conflict. “There are no shortcuts to a two-state solution,” he said, adding that the phrase on the Temple Mount was intended “to defame Israel.” Israeli policy said directly I joined the Times of Israel after many years covering US and Israeli politics for Israeli news outlets. 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