Fact-check: Did UN Grant Palestine Full Membership Status?
A viral video is widely circulated online and on social media platforms, especially on Facebook, purportedly claiming that Palestine is now a full member of the United Nations (UN). According to the claims, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly voted in favour of Palestine’s membership.
The text accompanying the video footage reads in parts: “Breaking news: Palestine is now a full member of the UN! The UN General Assembly has overwhelmingly voted in favour of Palestine’s bid to become a full member of the UN.
This has raised questions among the public about how it was possible to accomplish this in a single seating.
The United Nations is a diplomatic and political international organization that aims to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and serve as a center for coordinating the actions of member nations.
Findings revealed that a state seeking membership to the UN first submits an application to the Secretary-General and makes a formal declaration, stating that it accepts the obligations of membership as stated in the UN Charter. Then, the Security Council considers the application and makes a recommendation to the General Assembly, which must approve the application with a two-thirds majority vote. Once approved, the Secretary-General notifies the applicant state of the decision, and membership becomes effective on the date of the General Assembly’s decision
Meanwhile, there are currently 193 Member States of the United Nations. The latest State to join the United Nations was South Sudan (in 2011). According to Article 4 of the Charter of the United Nations:
“1. Membership in the United Nations is open to all … peace-loving states which accept the obligations contained in the present Charter and, in the judgment of the Organization, are able and willing to carry out these obligations.
“2. The admission of any such state to membership in the United Nations will be affected by a decision of the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council.”
PRNigeria fact-check used keyword search and discovered that the video footage started trending on X and Facebook with one particular caption such as this, “The United Nations General Assembly accepted full membership of Palestine.”
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Meanwhile, PRNigeria fact-check keyword search equally reveals that international mainstream media have widely reported the news from different angles. For instance, “UN General Assembly backs Palestinian bid for membership” and “UN member nations vote overwhelmingly to back Palestinian membership bid. The resolution passed 143 votes in favor, nine votes against and 25 …”
However, PRNigeria fact-check findings found out that the current video being widely shared was a UN event which took place on the 10 May 2024.
According to the UN press page, “During its resumed tenth emergency special session, the General Assembly adopted a resolution that as of 10 September 2024, upgrades Palestine’s rights at the United Nations as an observer State, urging the Security Council to favourably consider its full membership.”
“The Assembly adopted the resolution titled “Admission of new Members to the United Nations” (document A/ES-10/L.30/Rev.1) by a recorded vote of 143 in favour to 9 against (Argentina, Czech Republic, Hungary, Israel, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, United States), with 25 abstentions.
“By its terms, it determined that the State of Palestine is qualified for membership in the United Nations in accordance with Article 4 of the Charter of the United Nations and should, therefore, be admitted to membership in the Organization.”
A further investigation shows that contrary to the widely circulated video claims, Palestine was not admitted as a full member of the UN. Instead, the General Assembly adopted a resolution that upgrades Palestine’s rights as an observer state and recommends it for full membership.
Verification:
After investigating the claims, PRNigeria gathered that Palestine is not a full member of the United Nations, but it has been recognized as a sovereign state by 146 of the 193 UN member states, or about 75% of all UN members. In 2012, Palestine’s status was upgraded to a non-member observer state by the UN General Assembly, with 138 votes in favor, nine against, and 41 abstentions.
Although Palestine submitted an application for full UN membership in 2011, the US vetoed it, preventing the Security Council from recommending admission to the General Assembly. The US has consistently used its veto power to block Palestine’s full membership, citing the need for direct negotiations between Palestine and Israel.
However, in May 2024, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution recognizing Palestine’s qualifications for membership and urging the Security Council to reconsider its application. The resolution also granted Palestine additional rights at the UN, including the right to introduce proposals and participate in committees.
Conclusion
PRNigeria fact-check team observes that even though the UN General Assembly resolution in May 2024 recognizes Palestine’s qualifications for membership, the Security Council reconsideration of Palestine’s application is still pending.
Therefore the claim that Palestine was granted full membership status at the UN is speculative and misleading
