Palestine has succeeded in upgrading its position in the UN to 'non-member state' in a historic vote I. The UN General Assembly. The measure was passed 131 votes to 9, with 41 abstaining. What is particularly notable is the way in which countries did (or did not) vote. Importantly, old allies of Israel such as Germany, Australia and the United Kingdom all decided to abstain rather than back Israel. Other allies such as France, Spain and Italy actually voted for the measure!
Although this does not go as far as many Palestinians would like and create a fully fledged state with all the same rights and responsibilities that its neighbour Israel has, it is still hugely important. The vote will strengthen the hands of the Palestinians in future talks and will allow for Palestine to join some UN institutions. One of the more direct benefits, that even Israeli supporters can agree is advantageous, is the boast it will give to the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas. Abbas has been losing support to the more militant Hamas, a group the US and Israel label as terrorists. The successful vote in the UN should bolster support for him and help avoid a radical government.
In many way this vote can be viewed as the world's increasing frustration with Israel. It is losing many countries that were once steadfast supporters. Of the countries who did support it, the only two with serious power are Canada and the US. It's not hard to believe that without the unconditional support from the US to Israel, that Palestine would already be a UN member. One of the most contentious Israeli tactics is the building of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which the UN has condemned as illegal. Even the USA has grown tired of Israel on this front, during his first term in office Obama said that the settlements must be stopped
As I've said before, there is a long way to go until peace is achieved in the Middle East, but this is a step in the right direction.
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