U.N. Security Council Condemns Israeli Settlements

The U.N. Security Council today condemned 14-0, with the U.S. abstaining, settlements by Israel in the occupied territories.

The resolution, applauded by 14 of the Council members, was first introduced by Egypt in coordination with the Palestinians. It calls Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank a “flagrant violation under international law” and demands Israel discontinue all settlement activities immediately.

Israeli sentiment against the vote was almost uanimous shortly after it took place but Israeli critics of the response of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu have now come out in force.

Yitzhak Herzog, co-chair of the largest opposition party, said "Netanyahu was bragging about our foreign relations and now what's underway is a total collapse of Israeli foreign policy." He said Netanyahu "must be stopped before it is too late."

Referring to Netanyahu, Yair Lapid, head of the opposition party, said, "This is not policy, this is hysteria."

"We have enough haters who want to isolate us, there's no reason to isolate ourselves," he added.

5,600 New Units Planned

Israel announced on Monday, Dec. 26 that it plans an additional 5,600 homes in the disputed territories.

Approval of 600 housing units will take place Dec. 28 as the first section of the planned expansion, said the Israeli government.

"We do not turn the other cheek," said Netanyahu. "This is responsible, measured and vigorous response, the natural response of a healthy people that is making it clear to the nations of the world that what was done at the U.N. was unacceptable."

Israeli settlements in the West Bank totaled 386,000 by the end of last year. There were 208,000 settlers in East Jerusalem at the end of 2014, according to Peace Now, which opposes the settlements. Anat Ben Hun, director of development and external relations, Peace Now, said the planned new units "will harm Israelis and Palestinians by making it more difficult to arrive at a two-state solution."

U.S. Media Condemned Vote; Parlay Is Jan. 15, 2017

Most U.S. media condemned the U.N. vote, the New York Post headlining, "Bam Betrays Israel--Lets U.N. Condemn Our Ally." The New York Daily News headlined, "Obama Shafts Israel--Blesses U.N. Condemnation of Jewish State." The Wall Street Journal said Obama "stabbed Israel in the front" by allowing the vote against the settlements. The New York Times headlined: "U.S. Abstains in U.N. Vote Against Israeli Settlements...Measure Passes 14-0 in Major Rebuff After Pressure from Officials and Trump."

The subject is not mentioned either in letters to the editor, editorials, or commentary by columnists on the two editorial pages of NYT Dec. 27 although the settlement expansion story received page one play in the upper right corner. The subject is also absent from the similar two editorial pages of the Dec. 27 Washington Post.

NYT columnist Thomas Friedman on Dec. 29 said President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry want to "preserve Israel as a Jewish and democratic state" but Israel is "driving drunk" and "needs to stop the settlements." Trump is "Bibi's chump," says the headline on the column.

Focus is now on a 70-nation French-Hosted conference on Middle East Peace set for Jan. 15, 2017 in Paris. This is five days before the inauguration of President-Elect Trump. The U.N. vote and other aspects of Israel's relationship with those living in the West Bank and Gaza will be among the issues discussed.

Netanyahu on Dec. 26 defended his position, saying, "There's no alternative to a firm response...countries of the world respect strong countries that stand up for themselves."

Susan Power, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N, said, “Further settlement activity is in no way necessary for the security of Israel.” She said this policy dates to the Johnson Administration.

“The U.S. has been sending the message that the settlements must stop, privately and publicly, for five decades,” she said.

Trump Tweets Opposition

President-elect Donald Trump, who was involved in the negotiations with Egypt over the resolution, said U.S. policies regarding Israel will soon change.

“As to the U.N., things will be different after Jan. 20th.,” he tweeted.

Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) castigated President Obama.

“President Obama is personally responsible for this anti-Israel resolution. His diplomats secretly coordinated the vote, yet he doesn’t even have the courage of his own convictions to vote for it. This cowardly, disgraceful action cements President Obama’s richly deserved legacy as the most anti-Israel president in American history.”

The Israel Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said the U.S. betrayed Israel.

“It was to be expected that Israel’s greatest ally would act in accordance with the values that we share – and would have vetoed this disgraceful resolution,” he said.

Josh Block, head of the Israeli Project, condemned the Obama administration from not stopping the resolution.

Vote an "Abomination"

“Siding with such an abomination, ignoring universal calls to stand with our ally Israel, including from all the Democratic leaders in Congress, as well as Republicans, has again isolated this administration from the Democratic Party and further underscores the unusual, extreme and harmful foreign policy of this administration,” Block said in a statement.

“Obama has made it clear that he’s a Jew hating, anti-Semite. He likes Jews who are his friends but not Jews in general,” said Morton Klein, president of the Zionists Organization of America, the country’s oldest pro-Israel organization, before the vote was taken. “Obama is sticking it to the Jewish state of Israel” if the US. abstains or supports the resolution, Klein said on Friday.

Sen. Charles Schumer said he strongly urged the White House to veto the resolution.

“Whatever one’s views are on settlements, anyone who cares about the future of Israel and peace in the region knows that the UN, with its onesidedness, is exactly the wrong forum to bring about peace,” the New York Democrat said in a statement.

“I have spoken directly to the Administration numerous times … and in the strongest terms possible urged them to veto this resolution. I am strongly opposed to the UN putting pressure on Israel through one-sided resolutions. An abstention is not good enough. The Administration must veto this resolution,” the statement said.

Trump tweeted Thursday that the resolution should be vetoed.”

After Egypt backed off the resolution, four other countries on the Security Council – New Zealand, Malaysia, Venezuela and Senegal – said they would go ahead and introduce it.