After the United States abstained from voting, the U.N. Security Council on Friday passed a resolution urging Israel to stop building settlements on occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem.<br /><br /> The resolution said the establishment of settlements by Israel has “no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law.”<br /><br /> It was adopted with 14 votes in favor, to a round of applause.<br /><br /> The resolution was put forward at the 15-member council by New Zealand, Malaysia, Venezuela and Senegal a day after Egypt withdrew it under pressure from Israel and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.<br /><br /> Israel and Trump had called on the United States to veto the measure.<br /><br /> The U.S. abstention was seen as a parting shot by president Barack Obama, frustrated by failed efforts to broker peace during his tenure.<br /><br /> “This resolution reflects the facts on the ground and is consistent with U.S. policy across Republican and Democratic administrations,” U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power said after the vote.<br /><br /> The resolution is the first adopted by the Council on the issue in nearly eight years, and a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called it “a big blow to Israeli policy.”<br /><br /> Israel disputes that settlements in the West Bank are illegal and says their final status should be determined in talks on Palestinian statehood.<br /><br /> “One cannot simultaneously champion expanding Israeli settlements and champion a viable two-state solution that would end the conflict,” said U.S. Ambassador Power.<br /><br /> She added that continuous settlement building “seriously undermines” Israel’s security. <br /><br /> With Reuters<br />
