U.S. Pulls All Funding For UNESCO After Sweeping Vote to Support Palestinian Membership

ww.DemocracyNow.org - In an emotional — and largely symbolic move — the United Nations cultural organization known as UNESCO overwhelmingly voted to grant membership to the Palestinians, despite opposition from the United States and Israel. Now the United States says it will cancel a $60 million payment due in November to the U.N. body. Membership dues paid by the U.S. account for about a fifth of UNESCO's annual budget. The U.S. is also threatening to veto any Palestinian effort to be recognized by the UN Security Council as an independent state. "By going to UNESCO, this was a way both of gauging both where the public opinion is among the various governments and, more importantly, symbolically for the world, showing this is a moment of recognition that the 20-year old U.S. controlled so-called 'peace process' simply hasn't worked," said Phyllis Bennis, a Fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies, on Democracy Now! Nov. 1. "It has not brought the Palestinians any closer to reaching their rights, including, but not limited to, statehood, and that the question of what happens to Palestine is not something that can be limited to what the U.S. and Israel say."

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Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• democracy now
• news
• politics
• amy goodman
• dn
• phyllis bennis
• institute for policy studies
• IPS
• israel
• palestine
• UNESCO
• statehood
• united nations
• un
• general assembly
• membership
• WIPO
• Palestinian-Israeli conflict

[AndrewMann552]

Whoever cast the deciding vote back in '09 that gave Obama the Nobel should jump out a window now.

[TribeTPaul]

You mean Israeli/Jews pulled all of America's Tax money out of UNESCO.

[bigbaba1111]

a bunch of leftists useful idiots for islamists.

some would wish this leftists antisemits a week under the sharia so they wake up.

[OneSmileyDude]

I think Matt Lee got his answer.... It ticked Israel off, and the American dog growled for that reason. Must be tough being so arrogant and above all your neighbors. We need to clean house in Washington.

[callouschristian]

@madmiguelh2o "Can't control"? What have they done to control it until now. Zionists have had an easy ride until youtube started posting their crimes. What about the prior sixty years when it was fashionable to send them lots and lots of money.AIPAC still controls our media and our government while zionists and cons lump muslims under one umbrella so no one thinks it's a big deal when we mass murder them. You have to do more than support a movement to clean off that kind of blood.

[madmiguelh2o]

@callouschristian you had me right up to "weed out the zionists" thats not what democracies do. My whole argument with you was about presentation, we want as many people on our side as possible, your whole beef with jews for not being vocal enough against something they can't control is similar to the conservative criticism of muslims. I know several jews who have openly protested israel. they have grandmothers and cousins though who are zionists. weed them out sounds kinda...ya know

[callouschristian]

@madmiguelh2o We can't compare how who is better or worse. Gaza is a crisis. The indians have free tuition and are being used as a "red herring" by people who can't defend their actions taking place now.

[callouschristian]

@madmiguelh2o Israel is an emergency situation. What is happening to the flotilla MUST be illegal. There must be a lawyer somewhere in OWC. Let's sue the shit out of them. Seriously. Boycott. Starve. Then defeat them at their own game in a court of the people. To do this we must unseat our government that is obviously in their pocket. We should simply go to their office and remove them. Now. Tomorrow if possible. Then we weed out the zionists and hand them to the People.

[madmiguelh2o]

@callouschristian Thats what I'm doing. I'm just interested in attainable goals. Right now this very moment the IDF is illegally siezing gaza flotilla boats in international waters. There is plenty that we both agree needs to be done for the liberation of Palestinians. I honestly wouldn't say that Israel is any more rogue than the USA though. We have killed and helped oppress far greater numbers. We are just better at hiding it.

[callouschristian]

@madmiguelh2o Well, luckily, it's not about you. The solution is for the world to get a backbone and take back it's liberty from the most rogue, illegal terrorization of a people this world has seen in it's history. Stand up, rise up and say "HELL NO!". Especially not in my name.

[madmiguelh2o]

@callouschristian Well i want Unicorns to shit gold and fairies to five me blowjobs all day but that wont happen. How the hell do you expect Palestine to achieve that? In Gaza you are lucky to drink dirty water and eat. The 2 state solution sucks but at least its achievable soon. What the hell is your solution?

[callouschristian]

@madmiguelh2o Palestinians should not get their "slice". They should get every inch of it ALL back. And please don't justify the present by bringing up history. Israel has drug it's terrorism out for sixty years in secret as all those other injustices happened because we didn't have the mass media we do now not to mention a lot of people demanding answers. If we'd had the same during the indian genocide it would've been different outcomes. I want jews to get the hell out of Palestine. PERIOD!