UNITED NATIONS: Palestinian diplomats found international support for their complaint that Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory are illegal, but the US strongly opposed bringing the matter up in the UN Security Council. During a council session that lasted most of the day, representatives of dozens of countries supported Palestinian complaints about continued construction of settlements while peace efforts falter. Although a draft council resolution circulated on the matter never came to a vote Wednesday — and would surely have failed because of US objections — the Palestinians drew renewed attention to their grievances in a campaign to isolate and pressure the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In another move for international recognition, Palestinians raised their flag over the PLO diplomatic mission in Washington for the first time Tuesday. Early in Wednesday's UN session, the US, among five permanent members on the 15-country council with veto power, signaled it would not back the resolution sponsored by Lebanon. An additional 122 countries signed on as co-sponsors. It was presented as the council engaged in open debate on the Middle East, including Palestinian issues. It is unclear when a vote on the matter may be scheduled, but Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian observer to the UN, suggested it may not be considered for some time. “If it was up to us, we would love to see the Security Council acting on it immediately,” Mansour said during a session break, acknowledging that US opposition would make it difficult. Key Middle East peace issues “can be resolved only through negotiations between the parties _ and not by recourse to the Security Council,” said Rosemary A. DiCarlo, deputy US representative to the UN “We therefore consistently oppose attempts to take these issues to this council.” But DiCarlo said the US remains committed to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, if agreed to by both parties. The proposed resolution reiterates demands that Israel halt all settlement building in Palestinian territory. It says that settlements built in occupied territory since 1967, including disputed East Jerusalem, “are illegal and constitute a major obstacle to the achievement of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace.” The resolution also calls on Israel and the Palestinians to continue negotiations to wrap up final issues by September 2011 as called for by the so-called Quartet of Mideast peacemakers — the US, the UN, the European Union and Russia. It said international and regional diplomatic efforts should be intensified to support and invigorate the peace process. Israel did not participate in the Security Council debate Wednesday because of a labor dispute involving Israeli foreign service employees, the country's mission to the UN said. But in Occupied Jerusalem, Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev suggested the proposed resolution was counterproductive and pointed out that the Palestinians in the past committed to direct talks.
