Palestine UN Vote: A Small Step Towards Statehood

More than 138 countries, including many EU states, Russia, China, India and Brazil, voted on Thursday to upgrade Palestine to a nonmember observer state of the United Nations. Israel the U.S. and seven other states, including Canada, Czech Republic and Panama, voted against the resolution. Forty-one nations, including the UK and Germany, abstained.

The Palestinians turned to the General Assembly after the United States announced it would veto their bid for full UN membership last year. Concerns and critiques of this vote abound, but it represents an important step towards Palestinian statehood and a beacon of hope for Palestinians.