Following France’s lead, one EU country after another changed their votes in favor of the Palestinians.
By Barak Ravid, HAARETZ, Israel
As the hours wore on Thursday, the magnitude of the Israeli defeat in the United Nations General Assembly became continually clearer. One after another, the Foreign Ministry and Prime Minister’s Office received reports from Israeli embassies in Europe that countries were changing their votes at the last minute and leaning toward the Palestinians. A few hours before the vote, officials in Jerusalem understood that Israel was left without any Western support except for the United States, Canada and the Czech Republic.
“We lost Europe,” said a senior Foreign Ministry official. The erosion of Israeli support and shift to the Palestinians started a few days ago in France. President Francois Hollande’s words at a press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Paris a month ago, in which he expressed doubts about the Palestinian move in the UN, disappeared as if he never spoke them.
Despite previous declarations, France announced that instead of abstaining, it would vote in favor of recognizing Palestine as a non-member state – an observer state without full membership in the United Nations.
Sixteen members of the European Union have announced their support for the Palestinian move: Spain, Cyprus, Portugal, Luxembourg, Finland, Denmark, Austria, Malta, Ireland, Italy, Slovenia, Belgium, Sweden, Germany and Greece all joined France in the past few days. Norway and Switzerland, which are not members of the European Union, also announced their support for the Palestinian request.
Categories: Europe, European Union, Israel, Switzerland, United Nations
Free palestine
Obviously, the EU nations developed cold feet at the last minute when they thought of the tsunami size waves of outrage spreading from Arab and Muslim countries if they voted in support of Israel and its illegal settlements. But the important question is: Did the public and resounding slaps from Germany’s Merkel and France’s Hollande to Netanyahu’s face at the UN finally open Obama’s eyes? Or did Obama’s enormous love for Israel make him irrevocably blind? The next two or three weeks will tell.
Yesh Prabhu, Bushkill, Pennsylvania
Or the French remembered what French Muslims do when their not happy – start rioting and destruction.
The main reason for shift is gradual & persistent economical decline of Israel mentor which will also bring about ultimate end of Israeli lunatic attitude.
I am bit afraid that it can panic Israeli so much so that they could do something extremely nonsense as usual and same way Hamas or its Lebanese friends could also escalate their bloody & stupid warfare.