UN voting on Israeli settlements despite Egypt forcing delay
UN voting on Israeli settlements despite Egypt forcing delay
The UN vote on a resolution demanding Israel halt settlement building on occupied Palestinian territory will go ahead on Friday following Egypt's attempt to postpone the proceedings.
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A UN resolution against Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank has been rescheduled [AFP]
The UN vote on a resolution against Israeli settlement activity has been rescheduled after Egypt postponed proceedings at the eleventh hour.
The Security Council will now vote on Friday at 7.00pm GMT at the request of four countries who stepped in to push for action.
The council was set to vote on the draft resolution demanding Israel halts settlement-building on occupied Palestinian territory - put forward by Egypt - on Thursday, but Cairo put the vote on hold to allow more time for consultations, diplomats said.
The text had prompted lobbying efforts by Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to US President-elect Donald Trump, to demand that the US use its veto power to block the vote.
It emerged on Friday that Egypt had backtracked after President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi had agreed to a delay following a phone call from Trump to allow the incoming US adminstration time to tackle the issue.
Sisi's surprise turnaround follows repeated expressions of admiration for Trump, since claiming he was the first to congratulate the President-elect on his election victory.
The Security Council will now vote on Friday at 7.00pm GMT at the request of four countries who stepped in to push for action.
The council was set to vote on the draft resolution demanding Israel halts settlement-building on occupied Palestinian territory - put forward by Egypt - on Thursday, but Cairo put the vote on hold to allow more time for consultations, diplomats said.
The text had prompted lobbying efforts by Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to US President-elect Donald Trump, to demand that the US use its veto power to block the vote.
It emerged on Friday that Egypt had backtracked after President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi had agreed to a delay following a phone call from Trump to allow the incoming US adminstration time to tackle the issue.
Sisi's surprise turnaround follows repeated expressions of admiration for Trump, since claiming he was the first to congratulate the President-elect on his election victory.