Non-Member Observer State Status for Palestinian Authority

As we discussed in class, the U.N. General Assembly voted last Thursday on the issue of granting the Palestinian Authority non-member observer state status. As expected, the world voted overwhelmingly in favor of the resolution, in the end with over two-thirds of the membership voting "yes". An overall analysis of the vote can be found here (and video from CNN here, and the BBC here).  Only nine countries voted "no", of which only the U.S., Canada, and Israel were major western countries. Some of the possible ramifications of the new status, including access to the ICC, are discussed here. On Friday, in a move opposed by the U.S., Israel announced plans to proceed with building new settlements in Eastern Jerusalem, which was seen as both a response to the vote, and as making any two state solution more difficult - you can read about those issues here, and here. The settlements are generally viewed as being in violation of international law.