The UN’s political theater

This month, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a nonbinding resolution—a formal statement that expresses the opinion of an assembly but holds no legal obligation—known as the “New York Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine.” The declaration, which passed with an overwhelming vote of 142 in favor, 10 against (including the United States and Israel), and 12 abstentions, simultaneously promotes a negotiated path and unilateral actions regarding a Palestinian state. 

This misguided campaign for Palestinian statehood took the public stage on September 23 at the United Nations General Debate, where international leaders voiced their individual support. The declaration outlines a detailed roadmap for a two-state solution, including steps like a ceasefire, hostage releases, and a new Palestinian government. However, it also explicitly encourages individual countries to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state without waiting for a negotiated agreement. This dual approach, simultaneously calling for a collaborative process while endorsing actions that bypass it, is a dangerous and counterproductive show of political theater.

The United Nations (UN) places all the blame on Israel instead of addressing the actual cause of the conflict—the brutal surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took over 250 hostages. This biased approach undermines peace and stability in the Middle East. Furthermore, pushing for Palestinian statehood at this moment marks a problematic departure from the longstanding policy that the Israeli Palestinian conflict is best resolved through direct negotiations. Perhaps the most alarming sign that the UN is headed in the wrong direction is that Hamas, the very organization that triggered the war, has welcomed the UN’s actions as a step forward. This should be a clear red flag to world leaders that their policy rewarded terror.

The UN’s actions have also stymied recent progress toward a ceasefire and hostage exchange deal in Gaza, as Hamas leaders instantly realized they could harden their demands and still be granted statehood. The UN has also abandoned the remaining Israeli hostages to the cruel hands of Hamas, which is deliberately starving to death those who are still alive.

A Counterforce for Sanity: The American Christian Leaders for Israel

Despite the diplomatic grandstanding and biased condemnations at the UN, the United States, under the Trump administration, stood in sharp opposition to the resolution. The administration publicly blasted the measure as a “gift to Hamas” and a “counterproductive gesture” that would only reward the group for its atrocities and undermine genuine peace efforts. This firm U.S. stance, which was aligned with Israel, provided a powerful domestic counternarrative to the UN’s perceived bias. It is within this context that a vital and growing force, the American Christian Leaders for Israel (ACLI), has been working to provide a counternarrative based on truth. 

ACLI, a network of over 3,000 leaders representing millions of American Christians, has been engaged in advocating for truth and justice. The network, a project of the USA Branch of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ), has undertaken several crucial campaigns to share the facts and a commonsense approach to the Middle East with policymakers and the public. In the lead-up to the UN General Assembly meeting, ACLI mobilized its network to urge the administration to resist international pressure to undermine Israel’s security. In a letter to President Trump, the organization wrote: “This push for Palestinian statehood is one-sided, unrealistic, untimely and dangerous,” arguing that the events of October 7 clearly showed the fallacy of such an initiative and that it would only reward aggression.

A Persistent and Hypocritical Double Standard

The UN’s actions are merely the latest example of a persistent and deeply hypocritical double standard. This institution, which purports to be a defender of justice, has consistently failed to act with the same urgency and moral clarity against truly egregious human rights abuses. While Iran executes women, China incarcerates millions in “reeducation” camps, and North Korea starves its own people, the UN’s primary focus becomes a nation defending itself against a barbaric invasion and ongoing military attacks from an enemy openly declaring its intention to repeat them.

The UN’s double standard is not a sign of moral courage; it is a sign of a broken institution that has lost its way and betrayed its founding principles. Until the UN can apply the same scrutiny and accountability to all, its condemnations against Israel will ring hollow, serving only to undermine its own credibility.

The theatrical display on September 23 has become an annual ritual at the UN. At the General Debate, several nations, including France, Canada, and Britain formally recognized a Palestinian state, a move that was a central topic of discussion. Yet, the real-world consequences of these pronouncements are often negligible. The UN has no standing army to enforce its will, and the very nations it purports to govern routinely ignore its resolutions.

While these condemnations provide a public relations victory for Israel’s adversaries, they do little to change the facts on the ground. For Israel, these votes serve as a painful reminder of its diplomatic isolation, but they do not alter its resolve to defend itself against those who seek its destruction. The UN has become a stage for performative outrage, a place where diplomatic grandstanding replaces substantive action. And the world is less safe because of it.