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Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
(Reuters)
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Last update - 08:30 17/01/2009
UN General Assembly adopts resolution urging immediate Gaza cease-fire
By Shlomo Shamir, Haaretz Correspondent, and News Agencies
Tags: Israel, Gaza, Israel News 
 

The UN General Assembly called in a nonbinding resolution on Friday for an immediate, durable cease-fire in Gaza, rejecting a more radical text proposed by a group of Muslim and Latin American states.

Although the resolution has no teeth, diplomats who supported it said the overwhelming majority in favor presented a cohesive moderate world viewpoint that would strengthen Egyptian mediating efforts in the Gaza crisis.



The assembly's electronic scoreboard showed 142 countries in favor, four opposed and eight abstaining. But the exact figures were not immediately clear as several countries said their votes had not registered due to electrical faults.

Voting against were Israel, the United States and the Pacific island of Nauru, which believed the resolution was biased against Israel. Venezuela, which thought it was too soft on Israel, was also shown by the board as voting against although the country's delegate said he abstained.

The assembly's resolution followed closely the text of a Security Council resolution adopted last week. The council's cease-fire call has not been heeded either by Israel, which attacked the Gaza Strip on Dec. 27 to try to stamp out rocket fire by Palestinian militants, or by Israel's Hamas foes.

Like the council's text, Friday's resolution calls for "an immediate, durable and fully respected cease-fire, leading to the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip."

The adopted text was hammered out in negotiations between the European Union and the Palestinian Authority's ambassador, Riyad Mansour, and was supported by moderate Arab states.

Its backers narrowly headed off an attempt by a small group of radical Muslim and Latin American states, headed by Ecuador, to have the assembly vote on a text sharply critical of Israel.

Mansour told the session that resolution would have split the assembly and made a "gift" to Israel.

The EU-Palestinian text included a phrase, opposed by the radicals that "the Palestinian and Israeli civilian populations must be protected and their suffering must end."

The deputy head of Israel's mission to the United Nations, Dan Carmon, said the resolution was another General Assembly sitting used by the Arab states as a platform for slandering Israel.

"The resolution that was passed does not promote any solution and will not help bring about an improvement in the condition of the Palestinian people," Carmon said.

U.S. envoy Alejandro Wolff said the resolution was "neither necessary nor helpful" because the Security Council had already spoken and peace efforts were under way.

Syrian Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari, one of the radical group, said the majority that supported the adopted resolution "is not the one that the Palestinian people need."

Turkish PM: Ban Israel from the UN over Gaza operation

Turkey's prime minister on Friday said Israel should be barred from the United Nations while it ignores the international body's calls to stop fighting in Gaza.

"How is such a country, which does not implement resolutions of the UN
Security Council, allowed to enter through the gates of the UN [headquarters]?" Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

Erdogan spoke before UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was to arrive in Ankara to discuss the conflict. His comments reflected a growing anger in Turkey, Israel's closest ally in the Muslim world, over Israel's Gaza operation.

Erdogan accused Israel of attacking civilians under the pretext of targeting the Islamic militant group of Hamas.

Erdogan has previously defended his outspoken criticism of Israel's Gaza offensive, saying it did not mean he was anti-Semitic. However, the Turkish prime minister also remarked that the "Jewish-backed media" was falsely suggesting that Hamas uses civilians as human shields in the Gaza Strip.

Israel's offensive in Gaza entered day 21 on Friday, as the Israel Air Force attacked close to 40 targets in the coastal strip, while rockets fired from Gaza kept pounding southern Israel.

Turkish president Abdullah Gul on Friday renewed calls for an immediate cease-fire and also urged U.S. President-elect Barack Obama to focus on a comprehensive, long-lasting and fair solution once in office.

Related articles:
  • Turkey wants international monitors to ensure Gaza truce
  • Turkish PM denies anti-Semitism, says 'Jewish-backed media' spread false info on Gaza
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      1.   All Israelis should be barred from visiting Turkey 13:23  |  MJ 16/01/09
      2.   Turky`s Erdogan 13:26  |  ari 16/01/09
      3.   In light of Armenian genocide, Turkey should... 13:29  |  Brutus 16/01/09
      4.   Action speaks louder than words 16:32  |  MA 16/01/09
      5.   #3 Brutus 16:49  |  Chris Linthwaite 16/01/09
      6.   Airspace 16:49  |  David 16/01/09
      7.   hypocrite 20:21  |  Macro 16/01/09
      8.   Erdogan and Gul 20:37  |  David Israel 16/01/09
      9.   UN Israel Turkey 20:38  |  Vladislav 16/01/09
      10.   UN Resolution 541 Condemns 1983 Turkish Land Grab in Cyprus 20:38  |  David Israel 16/01/09
      11.   Erdogan the Greatest Demagogue 20:47  |  nathan bloch 16/01/09
      12.   It`s a good idea 21:41  |  Colin Wright 16/01/09
      13.   Bar Turkey from UN over Kurds oppression 22:25  |  Michael 16/01/09
      14.   With friends like these, who needs enemies? 22:43  |  Mick 16/01/09
      15.   Israel shouldn`t wait to be barred... 22:44  |  flyingdoc57 16/01/09
      16.   In light of Armenian genocide, Turkey should... 22:47  |  Ies Waterman 16/01/09
      17.   Turkey has to take the Palestinian side 22:54  |  Michael 16/01/09
      18.   I can not understand why Israel is in the UN 22:58  |  Mark Lincoln 16/01/09
      19.   What will Erdogan talk About After The War 23:00  |  helen dole 16/01/09
      20.   Erdogan`s Crap 23:22  |  Brod 16/01/09
      21.   Colin Wright if so why not Bar America from the UN 23:28  |  Gil 16/01/09
      22.   We are not against Israili People 23:29  |  Serdar Kasapoglu 16/01/09
      23.   Erdogan 23:49  |  Mark Gold 16/01/09
      24.   To all 23:51  |  Jozef 16/01/09
      25.   Turkey today 23:58  |  The Teacher/Instruct 16/01/09
      26.   #7 and some of you 00:07  |  A Turkish Jew 17/01/09
      27.   Serdar kasapoglu 00:08  |  David Israel 17/01/09
      28.   To all that condemn Israel for killing children 00:15  |  Don Saliman 17/01/09
      29.   # Israel should help Turkey-PKK peace agreement 00:16  |  Claire 17/01/09
      30.   #12 Wright.....the US is withholding its dues 01:00  |  Lynn 17/01/09
      31.   @14 flyingdoc...yes, indeed the UN does 01:06  |  Lynn 17/01/09
      32.   turkey and kurds 01:19  |  Ervin 17/01/09
      33.   To Mark Lincoln (# 17)...Why do you post in an Israeli newspaper? 04:20  |  flyingdoc57 17/01/09
      34.   Israel`s contempt 04:44  |  bobby 17/01/09
      35.   Mark Lincoln, this site`s ultimate Sophist, 04:45  |  bobby 17/01/09
      36.   Important Date 04:51  |  Pepe 17/01/09
      37.   Israel should declare the UN illegal... 05:24  |  utagawa 17/01/09
      38.   Dictators 06:31  |  Howard 17/01/09
      39.   Let`s tally this. 06:48  |  ManintheMiddle 17/01/09
      40.   Don`t Blame Turkey! 07:02  |  NeutralMan 17/01/09
      41.   state of Isreal 07:04  |  Clueless 17/01/09
      42.   why even bother 07:41  |  Rich 17/01/09
      43.   To Colin Wright # 12: If Israel was expelled from the U.N... 10:38  |  Bob 17/01/09
      44.   Congratulation Mr Erdogan 10:41  |  john and the TRUTH! 17/01/09
      45.   o Marc Lincoln #18: 10:43  |  Bob 17/01/09
      46.   the UN is a corrupt, irrelevant, antisemitic body 10:48  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 17/01/09
      47.   ı am a turk 11:37  |  onur 17/01/09
      48.   PKK is terrorist, I am a Kurd, Hamas Freedom fighters 11:38  |  Boran 17/01/09
      49.   please 11:39  |  ali 17/01/09
      50.   israel or turkey read this`!! 11:43  |  bünyamin 17/01/09
      51.   To #41 Clueless 12:19  |  Bob 17/01/09
      52.   #1 MJ - Not just Turkey 12:29  |  Boycott 17/01/09
      53.   the CHUTZPA of Turkey 18:37  |  Kenny 17/01/09
      54.   ali - PLEASE tell Hamas to stop hiding behind children.. Hamas 19:06  |  Ben 17/01/09
      55.   why are Turkish people angry? 19:20  |  Mehmet Sen 17/01/09
      56.   @ 50 AND NOW READ THIS! Turkey bombs villages in N. Iraq 19:35  |  Jew- and Bookburner 17/01/09
      57.   Christian Tureky 23:10  |  Magid 17/01/09
      58.   Mehmet Sen 01:04  |  David israel 18/01/09
      59.   Magid BE RESPECT 03:14  |  KAAN 18/01/09
      60.   Ban Israel from U.N 11:42  |  David 18/01/09
      61.   My opion of the Middle East 10:08  |  Richard Quigley 12/01/10
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