Members of the United Nations Security Council vote during a meeting on the Gaza peace plan at United Nations headquarters in New York, November 17, 2025. ADAM GRAY / AFP
References to a future Palestinian state have remained vague, distant and symbolic, but have been enough to provoke Israel's fury and secure a majority of votes at the United Nations Security Council. On Monday, November 17, 13 members voted in favor of the American proposal to launch the second phase of Donald Trump's peace plan for the Gaza Strip, aimed at ensuring a lasting ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave. Russia and China abstained.
"One of the biggest approvals in the History of the United Nations" and "a moment of true Historic proportion," Trump declared immediately, eager to chair the "Board of Peace," a body mandated until December 31, 2027, to oversee the "transitional authority" of Gaza until the Palestinian Authority (PA) completes the necessary reforms.
This UN resolution mentions "a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood" and referred to "a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous coexistence." This highly ambiguous reference to a future Palestinian state has nevertheless proven enough to irritate the most hardline members of the Israeli government. "If they accelerate the recognition of the Palestinian terrorist state, and the UN recognizes a Palestinian state, targeted assassinations of senior Palestinian Authority officials, who are terrorists for all intents and purposes, should be ordered," said Israel's Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, directly addressing Benjamin Netanyahu shortly before the vote. On Sunday, the Israeli prime minister reiterated that his opposition to a Palestinian state "has not changed one bit."
