Palestinian leaders unsure how to advance UN membership bid

United Nations: The Palestinian leadership is unsure how to advance its bid for UN membership as a state, with the Security Council set to confirm tomorrow it is deadlocked over the application, diplomats said. Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki said the leadership was waiting for the results of the Security Council’s membership committee meeting tomorrow to decide on its next step. [caption id=“attachment_128594” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki said the leadership was waiting for the results of the Security Council’s membership committee meeting tomorrow to decide on its next step. Reuters”] [/caption] The 15-member council is divided on whether to accept or reject the state of Palestine as a full member, according to a draft report of the committee which diplomats said would be approved tomorrow. Only six council members have firmly committed to supporting membership. The Palestinians cannot now hope to get the necessary nine votes in favor of membership, diplomats said. And the United States has threatened to veto the measure if they do. So Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas must now decide whether to press for a full vote at the Security Council, and a diplomatic confrontation with Washington, or to try for super-observer status at the UN General Assembly. AFP