Palestine makes history by taking seat at 79th UN General Assembly session

Palestine took a seat at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday in a "historic moment" for the nation, amid strong resistance by Israel to Palestinian statehood. The Palestine Authority's envoy, Riyad Mansour, sat at a table marked 'State of Palestine' between UN member states Sri Lanka and Sudan. The Palestinian Permanent Mission to the UN shared a clip on social media of the Ambassador of Egypt and the President of the General Assembly confirming the new seating arrangement for the State of Palestine delegation. Israel was not happy with the move, claiming it was influenced by political favouritism and that membership privileges should be reserved for member states only. The seat for the Palestinian delegation comes amid repeated attempts by Israel to block peace talks that would lead to international acceptance of the State of Palestine. While it is recognised by 145 of 193 UN member states, Israel and many of its allies refuse to accept Palestinian statehood, although other forms of recognition exist. The 79th UN General Assembly, led by President Philemon Yang, is taking place in New York and will focus on resolving conflicts in Gaza, Haiti, and Ukraine, as well as addressing poverty, inequality, and climate change. While Palestine is not a full member of the assembly, it is seeking full UN membership.