U.N. General Assembly Condemns Israeli Violence Against Palestinians

By Danielle Haynes

The U.N. General Assembly did not have the two-thirds majority vote to pass an amendment to the resolution blaming violence in Gaza on Hamas. Photo by Ismael Mohamad/UPI | License Photo

UPI -- The U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution condemning Israel's use of excessive force on Palestinian civilians.

The resolution passed by a vote of 120-8 with 45 countries abstaining.

Boy, there are a lot of antisemites in the General Assembly

A U.S. bid to condemn Hamas, a Palestinian fundamentalist group, for attacks on Israel also received a majority vote in favor -- 62-58 with 42 abstaining -- but the president of the General Assembly rejected it because it didn't have the required two-thirds majority to pass.

The resolution is unlikely to lead to any action against Israel because the United States, a close ally of the nation, would veto it.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, who introduced the amendment to blame Hamas, criticized the UNGA for focusing on violence in Israel instead of in Nicaragua, Yemen or Myanmar.

"Gaza is important, but what makes it more urgent than many other desperate places?" she asked. "What makes Gaza different for some is that attacking Israel is their favorite sport."

The primary resolution was introduced by representatives in Turkey, on behalf of the Islamic Cooperation, and Algeria, on behalf of the Arab League.

Turkish Ambassador to the United Nations Feridun Siniroglu told the UNGA before the vote that the resolution wasn't about taking sides.

"It is about supporting de-escalation on the ground. It is about deterring further violence from taking place," he said. "It is a call to the secretary-general to come up with his recommendations on how to protect civilians from further attack. It is a call to all sides to put an end to loss of lives."

What a crock! There is a very simple way to stop the violence on the Gaza border - the Palestinians simply have to stop rushing the Israel border. Go home, find a job, dig a tunnel, or something. Their actions are beyond stupid and easily qualify as insane. The Palestinians don't mind dying, obviously, so why should the UN be so upset about it.

The IDF has shown extraordinary restraint in protecting the border. They deserve commendation not criticism. But, the Arab nations in the UN obviously think the IDF should be ordered to only respond with sling-shots and stones. 

Arabs and Muslims hate Israel because there are about 1.5 billion of them and only a few million Jews, and they cannot eliminate the Jews no matter how hard and how many times they try. Deep down they know that God is on the side of the Jews and they just can't accept that. They haven't been able to accept that since the days of Isaac and Ishmael, when God called Isaac, Abraham's only son!

‘Not Satisfied’ Till Assad Gone': US Determined to Keep War in Syria Going

 US Pushes for Regime Change as

War in Syria Winds Down

U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley © Carlos Barria / Reuters

The US will not be satisfied as long as Syrian President Bashar Assad is in power, US Ambassador to the UN said, commenting on a major de-escalation effort brokered by Russia, Iran and Turkey without American participation.

Russia, Turkey and Iran agreed Friday on the fourth, final, de-escalation zone in Syria, which is designed to ensure ceasefire between Syrian government forces and rebels for a period of six months in order to pave the way for a political resolution to the six-year war. The deal, which is also aimed at separating terrorist groups, including Islamic State terrorists and Jabhat al-Nusra (Al-Nusra Front) from so-called moderate opposition, was agreed with the approval of the Syrian government, as well as members of Syrian opposition who participated in the talks.

This came ten days after the Syrian army with Russia’s help liberated one of Islamic State’s last strongholds in Syria, the city of Deir ez-Zor, which had been under the terrorists’ siege for three years. The lifting of the siege finally allowed humanitarian aid to reach the city.

“We’re not going to be satisfied until we see a strong and stable Syria. And that is not with Assad in place,” US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said at a White House briefing on Friday, when asked whether the US was left behind in international efforts to resolve Syrian crisis.

American officials have said their main goal in Syria is to fight ISIS, as Washington backs the operations of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) which includes Kurdish fighters as well as Arab militia groups.

The SDF advanced towards Deir ez-Zor from the eastern side of the Euphrates river this week, in an effort to gain control of the city’s eastern outskirts before the government does.

While Deir ez-Zor city was not an SDF target, the US-backed militias did not rule out the possibility that it may become one, saying people in the city wanted to be liberated from “the regime and Daesh at the same time,” AP cited Abu Khawla, leader of the group advancing towards the newly liberated city.

Well now, he sounds like a reliable source. I would bet that the people in Deir ez-Zor just want the fighting to stop. They just want the bombs to stop dropping on them. That's what the people of Homs and Aleppo are happy about.

But it seems that Saudi Arabia still intends to take over the Syrian regime and install one that is friendly to them rather than Iran. The civil war is rapidly becoming a proxy war between sects of Islam and America, with its $2 billion budget, has clearly chosen to side with Saudi Arabia thus ensuring there will be no peace for Syrians and the country will not be fit for European migrants to return to.

On Thursday, the US-led coalition said the SDF was not planning to enter Deir ez-Zor city.

Abu Khawla told AP that the militia will not let Syrian government forces and their allies cross the Euphrates river to gain control of its eastern side.

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Friday the Syrian army had already crossed.

“After a major victory near Deir al-Zor, the Syrian government army continues to clear Islamic State terrorists from the eastern regions of the country,” according to Zakharova.

“The suburbs of this provincial centre have been liberated. Advance units have successfully crossed the Euphrates and are holding positions on its eastern bank,” she added, without specifying the location.

On September 12, the Russian military said that the Syrian army had regained control of 85 percent of the country’s territory.

The first UN humanitarian convoy arrived in Deir ez-Zor on Friday. Russia began delivery of aid to the embattled city last week, almost immediately after the siege was lifted.

“We fed our children with stale bread, cleaning the mold from it. We have long suffered from artillery strikes and shells; they usually hit civilians – children and women in particular,” said a local woman, as residents described the horrors of life under siege.