The United Nations Security Council will vote on the draft UN resolution that sets terms for a final Israeli-Palestinian Arab peace deal before the end of 2014, the Palestinian Authority (PA) chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said Tuesday, according to the Ma’an news agency. Speaking to Russian media, Erekat said that the PA has made several amendments to the draft submitted last week and that the vote would take place very soon at any time before the end of 2014. The text of the draft resolution calls for Israel to “end the occupation” - that is, to withdraw from Judea and Samaria - by 2017. The draft resolution would set a 12-month deadline for wrapping up negotiations on a final settlement and the end of 2017 as the time frame for completing an Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria. PA Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki had said Friday that the vote could take place within 24 hours, but it never materialized, noted Ma’an. Erekat’s remarks come two days after diplomatic sources estimated that the vote on the unilateral resolution is likely to be postponed. According to the sources, the PA wants to postpone the vote on the resolution because it realized that its current wording is unacceptable to countries such as France and Luxembourg, two countries that the PA had hoped would support the resolution. Meanwhile, the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine on Tuesday urged the PA leadership to immediately withdraw the draft resolution, arguing that the leadership is presenting a confusing picture of the bid. They have been presenting it before the political bazaar at international level for bids, then they claim they are making amendments as if it has been submitted by others, the group said in a statement quoted by Ma’an. Both the original version and the amended version, including the French and British remarks, is beyond repair and reform, and should be withdrawn immediately without delay. The only solution, according to the group, is to withdraw the resolution before it is discussed at the UN and invite all Palestinian groups for a comprehensive national dialogue. The group’s criticism follows that of Fatah leader and arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti, who said Monday the UN resolution is an unjustified fallback which will have a very negative impact on the Palestinian position.
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 05:48:44 +0000
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