UN rejects Palestinian resolution on Israeli withdrawal timeline

The United Nations Security Council Tuesday rejected a Palestinian resolution demanding Israel withdraw from disputed territories within three years. The motion fell one short of the minimum nine "yes" votes in the Security Council. It received eight "yes" votes, two "no" votes and five abstentions: The US and Australia voted against; Russia, China, France, Argentina, Chad, Chile, Jordan and Luxembourg voted in favor; and the UK, Lithuania Nigeria, South Korea and Rwanda abstained.

The United States, Israel's closest ally, reiterated its opposition to the draft resolution as counter-productive to the peace process earlier Tuesday. It had insisted on a negotiated peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, not an imposed timetable.

The document called for Israel to fully withdraw from all “occupied Palestinian territories” by the end of 2017 and for a comprehensive peace deal to be reached within a year. It also called for new negotiations to take place based on territorial lines that existed prior to the 1967 war in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip..

The resolution was submitted by Jordan after its endorsement by 22 Arab states and the Palestinian Authority.