UAE welcomes UN’s resolution that Israel's occupation is illegal and must end

The UAE on Wednesday welcomed adoption of the UN General Assembly resolution submitted by the State of Palestine, which the UAE co-sponsored and supported.

UAE stated that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling is clear that the Israel's occupation is illegal and must end.

The General Assembly has welcomed the ICJ’s advisory opinion and this resolution sets out a roadmap for moving forward.

“We urge the Security Council to translate the advisory opinion into concrete steps,” the UAE said.

On Wednesday, the UN General Assembly adopted a non-binding resolution demanding an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories within 12 months and calling for sanctions against Israel. This resolution was met with strong opposition from Israelis.

The resolution, which has been the subject of discussion among the 193 UN member states since Tuesday, is based on an advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in July at the request of the General Assembly.

This opinion confirmed that the Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories since 1967 is illegal and that 'Israel is under an obligation to end it as soon as possible.'

The resolution, which was upheld by 124 votes in favour, 14 against (including Israel, the United States, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Argentina) and 43 abstentions, calls on Israel to 'put an end without delay to its illegal presence' in the Palestinian territories 'within a maximum of 12 months from the adoption of this resolution.'

This represents a more stringent deadline than that set out in the initial draft of the text, which proposed a deadline of only six months.

Furthermore, the resolution calls for the withdrawal of Israeli military forces from Palestinian territories, an end to the construction of new settlements, the return of confiscated land and property, and the resettlement of Palestinian refugees.

Additionally, the resolution urges member states to enforce measures to halt the export of arms to Israel in the event that there are "reasonable grounds" to suspect their potential use in the Palestinian territories.

Moreover, it calls for the imposition of sanctions on individuals or entities that contribute to the "maintenance of Israel's illegal presence" in the occupied territories.