Australia votes for Palestinian sovereignty in occupied territories

The Albanese government has shifted Australia’s vote in the UN to recognise the “permanent sovereignty” of Palestinians over the occupied territories and of Arabs over the Golan Heights, sharpening its differences with the Biden and incoming Trump administrations on Israel.

Australia had abstained on the same question in UN votes since 2011, but switched its vote to “Yes” in a UN committee ballot on Thursday morning AEDT that will proceed to a vote in the General Assembly.

The resolution, on “Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources, including land, water and energy resources”, was approved by 159-7 with 11 abstentions.

Australia also changed its position on a second question that seeks to blame Israel for a historic oil slick affecting Lebanon during the countries’ 2006 conflict, voting “Yes” after rejecting past resolutions on the matter. The motion was carried by 161-7 with nine abstentions.

The US and Canada voted against both resolutions, while the UK and New Zealand supported them.

The votes, in the second committee stage of deliberations, follow the government’s decision to break with the US earlier this year to support Palestinian membership of the UN General Assembly, and on two key UN resolutions on the war in Gaza.