The House of Representatives on Thursday voted to condemn a United Nations resolution critical of Israeli settlements as anti-Israel and one-sided, in a rebuke of the Obama administration’s decision to allow the resolution to pass.
The U.N. resolution, which passed in late December 14 to 0 with an abstention from the United States, declares Israeli settlements a “flagrant violation under international law” and describes east Jerusalem and the Western Wall as “occupied Palestinian territory.” Thursday’s House resolution passed 342 to 80, with Democrats and Republicans decrying the administration’s abstention and the U.N. resolution itself.
“The administration made a grievous mistake on not vetoing the one-sided, unfair resolution, which is biased against Israel,” Democratic congressman Eliot Engel, a cosponsor of the resolution, told THE WEEKLY STANDARD. “The United Nations excludes itself from being any kind of a fair mediator because it is so biased against Israel, each and every step of the way.”
“From every incoming administration, Democratic or Republican, I expect to see them treat Israel with the kind of respect that one would treat a trusted ally, and that’s not to kick them in their teeth when they’re down,” he said.
Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have charged that the Obama administration secretly helped draft the resolution and push it through. Administration officials have denied doing so.
Lawmakers said that the congressional repudiation would serve as a warning to the Obama administration not to take any further action against Israel in its final weeks.
“This is very concerning given the backdrop of the Paris conference on the 15th of this month, and the very real concern that the president could take further steps at the U.N.,” Foreign Affairs committee chairman Ed Royce said Thursday during debate over the resolution, referring to an upcoming Middle East peace conference hosted by France.
“Time is of the essence. We must act to reject United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334, not remain silent on it, and we’ve got to limit the damage that the administration has caused to prospects for a lasting peace,” he continued.
In the run-up to the vote, Democratic whip Steny Hoyer criticized the resolution for having an excessive focus on Israel and described it as representative of broader anti-Israel bias at the U.N. Security Council.
“The United Nations disproportionately targets Israel for criticism, condemning the Jewish state more last year than it did infamous violators of human rights and international law, such as Syria, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and South Sudan – combined,” he said. “A simple counting shows that more than half of the resolution’s operative paragraphs are critical of Israel; none are adverse to Palestinians.”
Republicans also blasted the administration’s decision to abstain from the U.N. vote and pledged to repudiate the action via the congressional resolution.
“This Administration has lost all credibility when it comes to Israel,” Majority leader Kevin McCarthy Kevin McCarthy and Royce said in a joint statement Tuesday. “This Thursday, the House will not abstain from its responsibility and will vote on a bipartisan resolution reaffirming our longstanding policy in the region and support of Israel.”
