[00:00.00]Go to 51voa.com for more... [00:04.38]From VOA Learning English, [00:07.30]this is IN THE NEWS in Special English. [00:11.29]This week, the United Nations General Assembly [00:14.97]voted to recognize the Palestinian Authority [00:19.30]as a "non-member observer state." [00:23.27]The vote came a year after the General Assembly [00:27.10]denied the Palestinian Authority full membership. [00:31.91]There was excitement at the UN's headquarters [00:35.02]in New York on Thursday as the voting came to an end. [00:39.48]"The voting has been completed. [00:41.45]Please lock the machines...(applause)." [00:44.57]One hundred thirty-eight UN members voted for the resolution. [00:51.79]Nine nations were opposed. [00:54.45]Forty-one others chose not to vote. [00:58.26]Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas [01:02.33]spoke to the assembly before the vote. [01:05.11]He said the Palestinian people would not accept anything [01:10.63]less than an independent Palestine, [01:14.27]with East Jerusalem as its capital. [01:17.94]"We did not come here seeking [01:21.47]to delegitimize a state established years ago, [01:26.95]and that is Israel. [01:29.12]Rather we came to affirm the legitimacy of a state [01:34.81]that must now achieve its independence, and that is Palestine." [01:39.66]He added that supporters of the resolution [01:42.61]are showing what he called their "principled [01:46.20]and moral support for freedom and the rights of peoples [01:51.02]and international law and peace." [01:55.06]The United States, Israel [01:58.44]and seven other countries opposed the measure. [02:02.64]American Ambassador Susan Rice spoke after the vote. [02:07.72]"Today's grand pronouncements will soon fade. [02:11.80]And the Palestinian people will wake up tomorrow [02:15.01]and find that little about their lives has changed, [02:19.48]save that the prospects of a durable peace have only receded." [02:25.94]The Israeli government denounced the UN decision. [02:30.42]Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu [02:33.30]dismissed the assembly vote as meaningless. [02:37.32]Israel's UN ambassador, Ron Prosor, [02:41.40]said the new status will not help the peace process. [02:46.24]Yet some Palestinians say [02:49.46]they hope the move will lead to new peace talks [02:54.02]between the Palestinian Authority and Israel. [02:58.35]Talks between the two sides were last held [03:02.61]in September of twenty ten. [03:05.54]The negotiations stopped when Israel refused to extend its ban [03:11.88]on new settlement activity in occupied Palestinian territory. [03:18.18]Being a non-member observer state gives the Palestinian Authority [03:24.43]the right to seek the help of United Nations agencies. [03:29.33]For example, the Palestinian Authority [03:33.65]could ask the International Criminal Court [03:37.07]to investigate Israeli actions in Palestinian territories. [03:43.06]There was great celebration in the West Bank and Gaza Strip [03:48.75]after the General Assembly vote. [03:51.26]Palestinians cheered, saying the vote added support [03:56.09]to their claim of statehood. [03:58.67]However, the cheers could soon disappear [04:02.66]if critics of the resolution take new economic [04:07.04]or political action against the Palestinians. [04:11.07]On Thursday, some American Senators threatened [04:15.40]to halt aid to the UN if the Palestinian Authority [04:20.43]uses its non-member status to bring cases [04:24.86]against Israel to the International Criminal Court. [04:29.33]Separately, Israel could hold back tax money it collects [04:35.05]and passes along to the Palestinian Authority. [04:39.42]Israel could also decide to expand Jewish settlements in Arab areas. [04:50.37]Go to 51voa.com for more...

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