MOSCOW, November 13 (RIA Novosti) – Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has confirmed that the Palestinian Authority will present its bid for non-member observer state at the United Nations on November 29, Al Arabiya reported.
"It has been agreed that the request will be presented on November 29," Abbas told reporters on Monday following talks with Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi in Cairo.
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), which represents the majority of Palestinian factions, currently enjoys a "permanent observer" status at the UN.
Abbas submitted Palestine's official application for recognition as an independent state in the UN in September 2011. That bid was blocked by a US veto in the Security Council.
The current bid, however, would require an approval by a simple majority of the 193-nation UN General Assembly and will not face a veto threat at the Security Council.
According to UN sources, at least 132 UN members are ready to recognize Palestine as an independent state.
The United States and Israel are opposed to the Palestinian bid insisting that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state could only result from direct peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis.
US President Barack Obama has recently reiterated that the United States opposes “Palestinian unilateral efforts at the United Nations,” while Israel said it was preparing to counter the Palestinian bid with financial sanctions.
A non-member observer state status would enable the Palestinians to be accepted to various UN and international bodies, and to challenge the continuing construction of Israeli settlements on the occupied Palestinian land in the International Criminal Court.
