The fourth committee of the UN General Assembly voted in favor of the measure by a margin of 98 in favor, 17 against and 52 abstentions. 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.” It 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”. Get The Times of Israel Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories By signing up, you agree to the terms The resolution calls on the court to weigh the conflict in accordance with 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 resolution will now go to the full General Assembly for formal approval, likely next month. 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. ???????? 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, highlighting the Palestinians’ rejection of previous peace offers. He also criticized the resolution for referring to Jerusalem’s Temple Mount only by its Arabic name, Haram al-Sharif. 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. 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 resolution also refers to the Temple Mount as part of the “Occupied Palestinian Territories, including East Jerusalem.” “Freedom of worship is a value they refuse to support,” Erdan said, accusing the UN of engaging in “destructive lies that will only perpetuate the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” 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.” 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. I believe that covering Israeli politicians responsibly means presenting a 360-degree view of their words and actions – not just conveying what is happening, but also what it means in the larger context of Israeli society and the region. This is difficult to do because you can rarely take politicians at face value – you have to go the extra mile to present the full context and try to overcome your own biases. I am proud of our work that tells the story of Israeli politics straightforwardly and comprehensively. 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