Historic Moment! Palestine Takes Seat at 79th UN General Assembly

SEAToday.com, New York - Palestine was granted an equal seat as a member at the 79th session of the General Assembly in New York on Tuesday (9/10). This is a historic moment for Palestine even though it is not a full member of the United Nations and holds status as an observer.

The Palestinian envoy to the United Nations Riyad Mansour sits at a table with the words “State of Palestine” between representatives from Sri Lanka and Sudan.

Egyptian Ambassador Osama Mahmoud Abdelkhalek Mahmoud said “This is not merely a procedural matter. This is a historic moment for us.”

On May 10 of this year, a resolution was adopted to recognize the reconsideration of Palestine’s UN membership in the UN Security Council and the granting of additional rights to Palestine. The resolution called for arrangements to allow Palestine to participate in General Assembly sessions, UN meetings and conferences, specifying that this would be done “on an exceptional basis and without setting a precedent.”

The resolution had won a resounding majority of 143 votes in favor.