Devirupa Mitra 
New Delhi: India abstained on Wednesday (September 18) from a widely supported United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution calling for an end to Israel’s occupation of Gaza and the West Bank within a year.
The resolution, which followed the International Court of Justice (ICJ)’s advisory opinion, passed with 124 votes in favour. The UNGA has 193 members.
India was one of 43 countries that abstained, while 14 nations voted against the resolution.
The non-binding UNGA resolution demanded that “Israel [bring] to an end without delay its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which constitutes a wrongful act of a continuing character entailing its international responsibility and do so no later than 12 months from the adoption of the present resolution.”
It also stated that Israel should “comply without delay” with its obligations as stipulated by the ICJ, including withdrawing all military forces, stopping all new settlement activity, evacuating all settlers, dismantling parts of the wall that are located inside Palestinian territory and repealing legislative measures that maintain the “unlawful situation”.
In a landmark judgment earlier in July, the ICJ declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory unlawful and called for it to “cease immediately all new settlement activities”.
The ICJ further stated that Israel’s policies and practices in East Jerusalem and the West Bank violate the “prohibition of the use of force in international relations and its corollary principle of the non-acquisition of territory by force”.
Delivering India’s ‘explanation of vote’ for its abstention, the Indian permanent representative to the UN P. Harish said that India remained a strong advocate for dialogue and diplomacy and believed that there was no other way to resolve conflicts.
“There are no winners in conflicts. The cost of conflict is human lives and destruction.”
Stating that India attached utmost respect to the UN and the UN charter, he stated, “A joint effort should be directed towards bringing the two sides closer, not drive them further apart. We should strive towards building bridges, not furthering the divides. I urge the August Assembly to make a genuine effort to strive for peace.
“In conclusion, I emphasise our steadfast commitment to the resolution of the conflict and restoration of peace by bringing human suffering to an end. We will continue to be guided by this spirit to this end. We stand ready to continue our engagements towards achieving sustained peace,” added Harish.
According to the Associated Press, the Palestinian UN ambassador Riyad Mansour described the vote as a turning point “in our struggle for freedom and justice”.
“It sends a clear message that Israel’s occupation must end as soon as possible and that the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination must be realised,” he said.
The Israeli permanent representative to the UN, Danny Danon, said that the UNGA’s approval of the resolution was a “a shameful decision that backs the Palestinian Authority’s diplomatic terrorism”.
By and large – except for India, Nepal, seven African countries as well as some Latin American and Pacific island states – the Global South voted in favour of the resolution.
European votes were divided, with several EU members backing the resolution calling for Israel to comply with the ICJ’s advisory opinion.
Of the permanent members, only the US opposed the resolution on Wednesday. The UK abstained, while France, Russia and China voted in favour.
Among the expanded BRICS group, India and Ethiopia were the only members to abstain, while Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates all voted in favour.
In India’s immediate neighbourhood, Nepal also abstained, while the rest of South Asia supported the resolution.
This weekend, the US will host the leaders of the Quad group, each of whom had different voting patterns: the US voted against the resolution, India and Australia abstained, and Japan supported it.
Since the Gaza war began in October, the UNGA has approved four resolutions, including the one on Wednesday.
India abstained on the first resolution, which condemned Israel’s invasion of Gaza in October 2023.
Subsequently, India shifted its stance on the next two resolutions, which called for a truce and sought to grant Palestine additional member-like status within the UN.
Historically, India has supported the annual UNGA resolutions advocating for an end to the occupation in Palestine.
Officially, India condemns the terror attacks on Israel on October 7 and the civilian casualties resulting from the ongoing violence, which it refers to as the “Israel-Hamas conflict”.
At the recent Gulf Cooperation Council summit, Indian external affairs minister S. Jaishankar stated that India supported an immediate ceasefire and was “deeply pained” by the loss of civilian lives. India has not directly implicated Israel in these civilian deaths.
Jaishankar also emphasised at the Arab summit that India has consistently advocated for a two-state solution to the Palestinian issue and has contributed to the development of Palestinian institutions and capacities.
The current military actions by Israel commenced after October 7, when Hamas launched a terror attack, killing over 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages into Palestinian territory.
The ongoing Israeli military campaign has resulted in more than 40,000 deaths, with around 70% being women and children.
After the October 7 Hamas attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed “solidarity” with Israel.
India also abstained from an initial UNGA resolution calling for a humanitarian pause to Israel’s military actions in Gaza. India has since reaffirmed its support for the Palestinian cause and its stance against terrorism, backing subsequent UNGA resolutions that advocated for a ceasefire in Gaza and supported Palestine’s UN membership.