A historic bid for statehood was submitted to the United Nations last week by the president of the Palestinian Authority and Chairman of the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization), Mahmoud Abbas. Palestinians have been calling for their own state since their Nakba, “the tragedy” in 1948, in which they lost their claim to a land of their own. The UN also has a long and complicated history with the Arab-Israeli conflict, one which is important to know in order to understand the current bid. Take a look at this Al Jazeera timeline to see how the relationship between the UN and Palestine has evolved over time.
Sadly, the battle of this bid in the Security Council seems to be predetermined, with the US vowing that it will veto any attempt at Palestinian statehood. Yet as is often the case with the United Nations, a diplomatic and normative victory for the Palestinians is likely to come about. At the very least this bid has refocused the world’s attention on the Occupied Territories and the lives of Palestinians living there.