BICOM

The Israeli government is reportedly considering a variety of responses should the United Nations General Assembly approve recognition of the Palestinian delegation as that of a ‘non-member state’ later this month.

Despite warnings from the UK, Israel and the United States, that the issues of Palestinian statehood and borders can only be resolved within the context of bilateral negotiations with Israel, the Palestinian Authority is set to press ahead with a vote at the UN General Assembly, which would approve upgrading the status of the Palestinian UN delegation from a non-member ‘observer entity’ to a non-member ‘observer state.’ The PA hopes that the implications of UN statehood will pave the way for widespread recognition of a Palestinian state within pre-1967 borders and allow it access to bodies such as the International Criminal Court in The Hague, where they could file complaints against Israel.

With a vote expected to be passed by the UN General Assembly on 29 November, the Israeli government is reportedly weighing a number of responses. Israel’s Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman spent three days in Vienna earlier this week discussing possible steps that can be taken with ambassadors to European Union countries. A cable was reportedly sent to all Israeli ambassadors, urging them to “do all possible to halt the Palestinian initiative because of its far-reaching consequences.” According to this morning’s edition of Haaretz, some of the options being considered by the Israeli government include stopping the transfer of tax revenue Israel collects for the PA, cancelling the Oslo Accords, or cancelling the Israeli work permits of thousands of Palestinian workers. Meanwhile, Israel Hayom reports that Israel is considering the possibility of taking its own unilateral measures, including annexing settlement blocs in the West Bank.

In a related story, Palestinian momentum towards the UN upgrade was slowed yesterday when European and Arab foreign ministers decided against jointly endorsing the initiative during a meeting in Cairo, calling instead for a negotiated two-state solution.