RAMALLAH, West Bank — Emboldened by their admission to the U.N.’s cultural agency, the Palestinians plan to seek membership in other international bodies as part of their campaign for statehood.
They also are looking into a parallel and contradictory track: Having lost hope in peace talks with Israel, the Palestinians are threatening to dismantle their government in the West Bank — a move that would confront Israel with the uncomfortable prospect of directly ruling millions of Palestinians.
For now, though, the focus is on the United Nations. Elated by UNESCO’s decision to grant them membership, jubilant Palestinian officials said Tuesday that they wanted to seize the momentum and expand their presence at the United Nations.
“We have gotten a precedent that might open the road for us to join other agencies,” said Ibrahim Khraishi, the Palestinian envoy to the U.N. in Geneva. He said the Palestinians are now studying whether they can join 16 other U.N. agencies.
Palestinian officials said that after Monday’s UNESCO vote, Palestinian Health Minister Fathi Abu Mughli was so excited that he rushed to the local offices of the World Health Organization to get information on joining.
The moves come as the Palestinians are increasingly seeking unilateral moves toward statehood that would bypass peace talks. A key test of those efforts could come as soon as next week. The Palestinians have asked the U.N. Security Council to grant them full membership in the United Nations, and a vote is tentatively set for Nov. 11.
If the Security Council bid fails, the Palestinians will instead seek the lesser status of a U.N. nonmember observer state, like the Vatican.
Israel and the United States have opposed the Palestinian attempts to win U.N. membership, saying peace can be reached only through negotiations. On Tuesday, Israel authorized its military to take all necessary steps to stop rocket fire from Gaza, including a ground operation, an Israeli military official said, as Egypt worked on a truce and said Israel had agreed to delay stepping up its response.
The Israeli government decision stopped well short of ordering tanks to roll into Gaza, and it appeared unlikely that would happen, as rocket fire all but stopped over the past day.
In another development, Israel announced late Tuesday that it has ordered accelerated construction for Israelis in east Jerusalem, the section claimed by the Palestinians as their capital, and nearby West Bank settlements. A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said 2,000 apartments would be built. Actual construction would be years away because of planning and permit procedures.
Faceoff with U.S.
The United States, as a permanent member of the powerful U.N. Security Council, has promised to veto the Palestinians’ request for full United Nations membership.
But the Palestinians are still trying to rally the required nine-vote majority that would trigger the veto, believing that would give them a moral victory by placing the U.S. at odds with most of the international community. It remains unclear whether the Palestinians can muster the votes.
