Monitoring Desk
NEW YORK: The 193-member United Nations General Assembly will hold a rare emergency special session on Thursday at the request of Arab and Muslim states on U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, sparking a warning from Washington that it will “take names.”
Palestinian U.N. envoy Riyad Mansour said the General Assembly would vote on a draft resolution calling for Trump’s declaration to be withdrawn, which was vetoed by the United States in the 15-member U.N. Security Council on Monday.
The remaining 14 Security Council members voted in favor of the Egyptian-drafted resolution, which did not specifically mention the United States or Trump but which expressed “deep regret at recent decisions concerning the status of Jerusalem.”
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley has warned member states ahead of a voting on a resolution calling for the reversal of President Donald Trump’s decision on Jerusalem, according to a report by Foreign Policy.
On Thursday, the UN General Assembly will hold a rare emergency special session regarding Trump’s Dec. 6 decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and relocate Washington’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Citing an email, the news magazine reported Tuesday that Haley warned the member states, saying President Trump was “watching” the voting.
“As you consider your vote, I want you to know that the President and U.S. take this vote personally.
“The President will be watching this vote carefully and has requested I report back on those countries who voted against us.
We will take note of each and every vote on this issue,” Haley wrote in the email, Foreign Policy said.
On Tuesday, Haley posted on Twitter, saying: “At the UN we’re always asked to do more give more.”
“So, when we make a decision, at the will of the American ppl [people], abt [about] where to locate OUR embassy, we don’t expect those we’ve helped to target us. On Thursday there’ll be a vote criticizing our choice. The US will be taking names,” she said on Twitter.
Under a 1950 resolution, an emergency special session can be called for the General Assembly to consider a matter “with a view to making appropriate recommendations to members for collective measures” if the Security Council fails to act.
Only 10 such sessions have been convened, and the last time the General Assembly met in such a session was in 2009 on occupied East Jerusalem and Palestinian territories.
Thursday’s meeting will be a resumption of that session.
