The Palestinian Authority said today it wished to address the United Nations to obtain "international protection for the Palestinian people" following a US veto of an Arab resolution on the Middle East.
"Faced with the veto made recently by the United States to the (UN Security Council), we must address the General Assembly of the UN to ensure international protection for the Palestinian people," a report presented by the Palestinian delegation to a meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo said.
Exercising its veto power for only the second time in more than four years, the United States on December 14th quashed a resolution co-sponsored by Tunisia and Egypt that condemned "all acts of terror, in particular those targeting civilians."
The resolution also called for a "monitoring mechanism" to "help create a better situation in the occupied Palestinian territories."
The Palestinian Authority "calls upon the international community to rapidly send international observers to the Palestinian territories," the Palestinian report submitted to the Arab League said.
According to the same text, US policy is characterized by "partiality in favor of the Israeli government ... which represents a position unacceptable to Arab states, and threatens Arab-American relations."
The report also calls on Arab countries to "affirm their support for the Palestinian Authority of President Yasser Arafat" and to be wary of Israeli attempts to weaken the "legitimate and elected" Palestinian leadership.
AFP