The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) renewed its call on Tuesday for Israel to withdraw from the occupied Palestinian territories and announced an international summit scheduled for June 2025 to explore the feasibility of a two-state solution.

In a resolution adopted by a vote of 157-8, the UNGA reaffirmed its "unwavering support, in accordance with international law, for the two-state solution of Israel and Palestine." The United States and Israel were among the eight nations voting against the resolution, while seven countries abstained.

The resolution emphasized that the two states should coexist "side by side in peace and security within recognized borders, based on the pre-1967 borders."

International Summit Planned for June 2025

To further discussions on the two-state solution, an international conference will be held in New York in June 2025. France and Saudi Arabia are set to co-host the summit, which aims to address key challenges and opportunities for achieving peace in the region.

"We have decided to hold a conference next June," French President Emmanuel Macron announced during a visit to Saudi Arabia. He expressed optimism that the summit could consider Israel's security concerns while demonstrating the viability of a two-state framework. Macron added that France is prepared to recognize a Palestinian state, but only "at a useful moment."

The UNGA reiterated its commitment to ensuring "the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, primarily the right to self-determination and the right to their independent state."

Palestinian Envoy Highlights Importance of Statehood

Speaking at the UN, Palestinian envoy Riyad Mansour called the issue of Palestinian statehood "the most critical test to [the UN’s] credibility and authority and to the very existence of an international law-based order."

The Assembly’s resolution also serves as a historical reminder of the UN’s role in the region. In 1947, a UN General Assembly resolution partitioned the former British-ruled Palestine into two states, one Arab and one Jewish, laying the foundation for the ongoing conflict.

Context of the Current Conflict

The backdrop to the renewed diplomatic focus is the ongoing war in Gaza, which began after Hamas launched terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023. In response, Israeli military operations have killed more than 44,500 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. The ministry claims that over half of the casualties are women and children.

The June 2025 summit is seen as a critical opportunity to revive hopes for peace in a region marked by decades of violence and unresolved disputes.