Israel is girding for a high-stakes diplomatic confrontation at the United Nations next week as the Palestinian Authority pushes for sweeping measures against the Jewish state, including calls for an international arms embargo and sanctions. Israeli officials have crafted a series of escalating countermoves, from freezing funds to cutting security ties with the Palestinian Authority, should the UN adopt the proposed resolutions.
The Diplomatic-Security cabinet, Foreign Ministry, and other key bodies have held marathon sessions to devise action plans. These range from gradual steps to potentially crippling blows against the Palestinian Authority, including halting fund transfers and severing security cooperation.
Israel's response will be calibrated to match Palestinian actions in New York, where a flurry of anti-Israel proposals and votes is expected in the coming days. The crescendo will be a General Assembly resolution calling for an international arms embargo and sanctions against Israel.
On Monday, the UN Security Council is slated to convene on Gaza's humanitarian situation, with Sigrid Kaag, the UN's top humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza, set to brief the council.
Tuesday will see the General Assembly open debate on the Palestinian-submitted resolution. It primarily advocates for sanctions and an arms embargo while disregarding Israel's security concerns, based on what Israeli officials call a skewed and extreme reading of the International Court of Justice's recent ruling. Israel's UN envoy, Danny Danon, is expected to speak, blasting the move and urging democratic nations to reject a resolution that he says turns a blind eye to Palestinian terrorism.
The anti-Israel crescendo is set for Wednesday: a vote on the Palestinian resolution, widely expected to pass by a comfortable margin. With no veto power in such General Assembly votes, Israel faces an uphill battle. These moves directly follow efforts to bolster the Palestinian Authority's UN standing in May. Now, as a complementary step, they aim to further erode Israel's global standing.
The diplomatic onslaught continues Thursday with a "monthly" Security Council session focused on the West Bank. Chaired by Slovenia's foreign minister, it centers on implementing the contentious Security Council Resolution 2334.
This resolution, passed in the twilight of President Barack Obama's term in 2016, deemed Israeli settlements in territories captured in 1967 – referred to by the Security Council as "occupied Palestinian territories" – illegal. "The Palestinians are waging diplomatic terror, and the UN is complicit – it's a new moral low," Danon told Israel Hayom.
"It's a blatant politicization and misuse of UN resources, dedicating an entire week to Palestinian issues while turning a blind eye to 101 hostages languishing in Gaza without Red Cross access, and hundreds of thousands of Israelis displaced by multi-front Iranian attacks. I urge UN member states to oppose these moves that effectively reward terrorism and the slaughter of innocent civilians," he said.
As high-level diplomatic consultations unfold, Foreign Minister Israel Katz has directed his team to draw up graduated measures against the Palestinian Authority. If Ramallah follows through on its UN threats and violates the Oslo Accords, Jerusalem won't hesitate to "go all the way," diplomatic sources warn.
The Foreign Ministry is weighing options to pressure the Palestinian Authority, including freezing fund transfers and suspending security cooperation. Sources say Katz aims to enforce the Oslo Accords by shuttering foreign missions operating in Palestinian Authority territory.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will ultimately decide on escalating measures, following months of pressure from Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. "The PA's diplomatic and legal offensive poses a grave threat," Smotrich argues. "Our ostensibly weakest foe is inflicting the most damage. More ministers now grasp what I've been shouting since 2016 – the PA is more liability than asset."
