Sunday, December 23, 2012

Egypt - Constitution Accepted - UPDATE


December 24 Update included.
Official Results from December 25 further down !



Above: Predicted overall result for the second stage of voting.

11:57 CET / 10:57 GMT

After the counting of more than 63% of votes following yesterday's second round of voting, it becomes clear that president Morsy's constitutional draft has been accepted by an overwhelming majority of 70.9%, result published at 10:00 GMT this morning by the Arabic channel of Al-Jazeera. Rural areas are approving the new constitution by even more than 80%. Only the Red Sea tourism resorts bring about some 60% of votes in support.
Even though urban areas present lower support than rural areas [i.e. Kairo / al-Jiza 66.3%, Alexandria 55%, Suez 70.4% and Port Said 51.1% votes in favor of the constitution], these first results are already proving widespread agreement to the president's constitutional draft which is considered to promote a democratic state based on Islamic values.



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Evening Update for December 23, 2012:

According to different European media (German TV / ARD, France 24), last voting results in the Egyptian referendum are showing a 64% majority of all votes in favor of president Morsy's constitutional draft. Voting participation should have been rather low at 32%.
A member of the electoral commission said that any voting results are to be considered as inofficial up to now. As expected, the opposition has already voiced accusations of fraud during the referendum.

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Morning Update for December 24, 2012:


Above: Latest election results predicted by Al-Jazeera on December 23/24 and worked up by Ulysses.

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Official Results from December 25, 2012

Nearly two-thirds of voters in the Egyptian referendum have supported a proposed new constitution, the electoral commission has announced. In all, 63.8% of voters cast Yes ballots in two stages, on December 15 and 22. The commission announced the result live on state-run Nile News TV. Parliamentary elections must now take place within two months.
[Source: BBC, London on December 25, 2012]


Above: Official Results published by Egypt's Electoral Commission.

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Editor's Note and Final Evaluation:

The overall result of both rounds of voting is presenting some 63,8% of votes in favor of the new constitution according to the electoral commission and different international media.

Unfortunately, the outcome of the second round of voting has not been mentioned. However it can be counted by using the outcome of the first round of voting from December 15 which was 56.6% according to CNN [news service on December 27].

Two times the average value (63.8%) is equalling the sums of first round (56.6%) and second round (x%) of voting:
63.8 + 63.8 = 56.6 + x
127.6 = 56.6 + x
x = 71


The counted outcome of the second round of voting should therefore be 71%. The result fits perfectly with the predicted 70.9% published by Al-Jazeera on December 23 (diagram on top of this blogspot). This implies an increase of Yes-votes for the constitution in the second round of voting !





Last 200 localized visitors to "blueprint news" who came to my site on December 11-26, 2012:


Most Northern visitor to "blueprint news" who came to my site on December 24, 2012:



Saturday, December 22, 2012

Egypt's Constitution - 2nd Round of Voting



ـ25 مليون ناخب مصري في 17 محافظة يدلون بأصواتهم في المرحلة الثانية و الأخيرة من الاستفتاء على الدستور الجديد

25 Million Egyptian voters in 17 districts are [presenting] their vote in the second and last round of the referendum for the new constitution.


During the second round of voting for the constitutional draft in Egypt, vice-president Mahmoud Mekki (above picture left) declares his resignation from office.

محمود مكي يقول إنه استقال لأن العمل السياسي لا يناسب طبيعة تكوينه كقاض

Mahmoud Mekki says he resigns because the political work doesn't [offer] a quality in its structure [suitable for] a judge.

مشروع الدستور المصري الجديد لا ينص على وجود نائب لرئيس الجمهورية

The legal [settings] of Egypt's new constitution don't fix the existence of a vice-president to the republic.

مكي يقول إنه قدم استقالته في 7 نوفمبر الماضي لكن الاعلان عنها تأجل لأسباب مختلفة

Mekki says he [made up his mind] to resign [as early as] November 7, however postponed the announcement [because of] certain preparations.



[Source: Al-Jazeera, Arabic TV Special "Revolution Talk حديث الثورة" on December 22, 2012]

Syria - Assad's Dangerous Games



Above: Visitor access points from the region to "blueprint news", including some most probable positions of German Patriot missiles, as published two days before in my blogspot Syria at the Mercy of Opposing Powers.

Only some days ago, German media were still wondering about the urgent installation of two German Patriot units in Eastern Turkey and the related deployment of up to 400 German troops. Knowing that artillery rockets or rocket propelled grenades (RPG) which recently hit Turkish border settlements were just too tiny targets for the Patriot missile defence system, one might come to think that any official explanation given was only to hide the probability of Iranian medium-range missiles hitting our NATO ally Turkey whenever it came to an armed conflict already looming between the U.S. driven by Israel and the Islamic Republic.


Above: Range of Syrian Scud-D missiles.

From that point of view, yesterday's news coming from CNN had something "soothing" in it. They told us that Syrian government troops had already applied some four Scud-D rockets in their fight against the own people. Such missiles developed in North Korea on the basis of a Soviet designed model could be fitted with chemical weapons. Their range of 700-800 km would make it possible to reach Israel as well as Ankara, the capital of Turkey. According to CNN, the Assad regime should have 700 of such Scud-D rockets in stock.

On a press conference in Moscow even Russia's president Putin declared that change was needed in Damascus, further distancing Moscow from Syrian President Bashar Assad in another sign that Assad's support may be fraying even among his few remaining allies. [Source: Los Angeles Times on December 20, 2012]

Friday, December 21, 2012

USA - Economic Interest Colliding With Personal Safety


This evening, CNN talk master Christiane Amanpour dealt with growing demands of restricting the possession of private weapons after the December 14 massacre at Sandy Hook elementary school in Newton / Connecticut where a mentally disturbed youth took 26 lives, including 20 children, in a shooting spree before killing himself.


Debra Maggart, former Republican Tennessee legislator with a general pro-gun attitude, reported on how National Rifle Association NRA had been turning against her during her election campaign when she decided not to support an NRA promoted bill Maggart considered to be unnecessary.


NRA's official comment after the Sandy Hook massacre was: "The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun." This is what Wayne Lapierre, executive vice-president of the NRA, said today, his speech being disrupted by protesters. Instead he argued, special school guards should be armed in order to increase security for kids.

Andrew Goddard, president of the Virginia Center for Public Safety, referred to this when he said the head of the NRA is not necessarily representing the NRA's four million members but rather obliged to promote the selling of more guns on behalf of the gun making industry.

It's a well-known problem in the U.S.A. that widespread and sometimes militant lobbyism of the gun maker's industry has blocked any tightening of laws that are, up to now, allowing almost unrestricted private possession of weapons in some states. Yet, there is an interesting aspect that might change this situation on a long term. As pension funds are partly based on shares of the gun maker's industry, economic pressure might be possible to change the industry's behaviour.

Additional material on the phenomenon of school shooting and on school shootings in the U.S.A. is easily available on the web.

Below pictures:
- Personnel of the Sandy Hook fire brigade in grief after the massacre.
- First Lady Michelle Obama addressing the victimized families.


[Source: CNN daily news and Christiane Amanpour special on December 21, 2012]




A localized visitor to "blueprint news" coming from Bethlehem on December 20, 2012:



Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Syria at the Mercy of Opposing Powers



المركز الإعلامي السوري: الجيش الحر يسيطر على طريق الإمداد الواصل بين الرستن و حماة

The Syrian center for information: The Free Army is blocking the supply route running between al-Rastan and Hama.


الخارجية الإيرانية: حل الأزمة السورية ممكن عبر مرحلة انتقالية تسمح للجميع بالاستعداد لانتخابات و دستور جديد

Iran's ministry of foreign affairs: A solution to the Syrian crisis [should be] possible by way of an intermediary phase that is permitting the [national] assembly to prepare [general] elections and a new constitution.

الخارجية الإيرانية: من المستبعد سقوط النظام السوري قريبا و جيش النظام و جهاز الدولة يعملان بسلاسة

Iran's ministry of foreign affairs: An immediate downfall of the Syrian regime is unlikely and, both, Syrian [government] troops and the apparatus of state are easily acting [i.e. fully functioning].


عضو بالائتلاف الوطني السوري: الروس و الإيرانيون في سوريا أهداف مشروعة للثورة بسبب موقف حكوماتهم المعادي للثورة

A member of the National Coalition of Syria: Russians and Iranians in Syria are legal targets for the revolution because of their government's position hostile to the revolution.


[Source: Al-Jazeera, Arabic channel, on December 18, 2012, evening news]

Distribution of visitors to "blueprint news" coming from the region:



Sunday, December 09, 2012

Egypt - Morsy's Referendum - UPDATE


- Last UPDATE for Referendum Results on December 18 -


مصر: جبهة الانقاذ الوطني ترفض الاستفتاء على الدستور

Egypt: The Front for National Salvation Rejects
the Referendum on a Constitution.



Yesterday, December 8, 2012, the English channel of Al-Jazeera came with news of Egypt's president Morsy withdrawing his decrees that should have given him additional powers and the decision to put his own constitutional draft to public vote. Oppositional groups are refusing their support of what can be seen as a referendum on the disputed constitutional decrees.

Today, December 9, that information was confirmed by a report from the Arabic service of BBC, London (above screenshot from their website).

Here now two comments from political groups that voiced their protest against Morsy during last days' violent uprisings in the streets of Cairo. Both had been quoted by the Arabic service of Al-Jazeera the day before:


جبهة الإنقاذ الوطني المعارضة تعقد اليوم اجتماعا لإعلان موقفها من الإعلان الدستوري

Today, the oppositional Front for National Salvation [is complicating] the [national] assembly's announcement of their position in the proclamation [of a constitution].


[The Front for National Salvation is no political party but a national alliance founded by presidential candidate Al-Baradei in order to organize a widespread opposition against Morsy's decrees that would have promoted the president's personal powers.]

رئيس حزب الوسط: الإعلان الجديد تضمن حلولا لكل المعضلات التي ثار جدل بشائنها

The president of the Al-Wasat party says the new proclamation assures [its] occurrence in all difficulties that are [spreading] dispute with their insulting [character].


[The Al-Wasat party is a more liberal group that broke away from the Muslim Brotherhood. It proclaims a moderate Islamism. The "new proclamation" mentioned in the above text is referring to a constitutional draft proclamation recently presented by Egypt's president Morsy.]



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News from the First Round of the Referendum
Released on December 16 by Al-Jazeera :


دعوات للإعادة بعد تفوق "نعم" باستفتاء مصر

Headline: Calls for a repetition [i.e. of voting] after predominance of "yes" [votes] in the Egyptian referendum.

أظهرت النتائج الأولية من المرحلة الأولى للاستفتاء على الدستور المصري تأييد نحو 57% له و معارضة 43% وسط انقسام بين المؤيدين و المعارضين, و دعت منظمات حقوقية إلى إعادة المرحلة الأولى لما و صفته بخروق شابت العملية

Basic results from the first round of the referendum on Egypt's constitution are showing a 57% support [i.e. for president Morsy's constitutional draft] and a 43% opposition [dividing] supporters and opposers while juridical organizations are calling for a repetition of that first round and are denouncing "ruptures" that are corrupting the process.



Additional information from Al-Arabiya on December 16, 2012:



Headline: Egypt's opposition is calling for a repetition of polling in the referendum.

The above photo is showing the decisive figures of Egypt's opposition: Amr Moussa, Mohammad Al-Baradei and Hamdin Sabahi (right to left).

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Society news from Egypt by Al-Arabiya on December 17, 2012:

قالت الإعلامية منى الشاذلي, مساء اليوم الأحد عبر قناة "إم بي سي مصر", إنه تم القبض على الحارس الخاص لخيرت الشاطر,ـ نائب مرشد جماعة الإخوان المسلمين

On Sunday evening [i.e. December 16] the journalist Mona al-Shazly told on [TV] channel MBC Egypt being decided to seize as the "bodyguard for the benefits of sharing" a vice-councillor to the community of the Muslim Brotherhood.


[Editor's Note: Mona al-Shazly was a popular talk show host on Egypt's Dream 2 TV channel where she became known for her talk sessions with high-ranking politicians. Her new employer MBC Egypt is a brandnew channel owned by the Dubai-based group MBC (Middle East Broadcasting Center).]

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UPDATE for December 18 quoting Al-Jazeera, Arabic channel:



الجمعية التأسيسية لوضع الدستور في مصر تدعو البرادعي و موسى و صباحي للحوار يوم الجمعة القادم

The constitutional assembly, assigned to bring about the [new] constitution of Egypt, invited [Mohammad] al-Baradei, [Amr] Moussa and [Hamdin] Sabahi [to participate] in a dialogue to be held next Friday.

مساعد وزير العدل المصري ينفي إشراف أي شخص غير القضاة على المرحلة الأولى من الاستفتاء

The Egyptian vice-minister of justice refuses to supervise [anybody] not belonging to the jurisdiction during the first round of the referendum.


مؤشرات تصويت المصريين بالخارج تظهر تأييدا للدستور بنسبة 69% في نحو 30 دولة أبرزها دول الخليج

Egyptian [citizens] abroad registered for polling are showing a 69% support for the constitution in 30 countries, especially in the Gulf states.


Tuesday, December 04, 2012

Israel - Western Criticism and German Dilemma


News UPDATE for December 6 included.
Editor's POSTSCRIPT has been added on December 15 !




Yesterday, November 3, 2012, Al-Jazeera and other international media reported that Britain, France and Sweden have summoned Israel's ambassadors in order to voice their concerns over Israeli settlement plans. The United Kingdom announced that acual settlement plans would cast doubt over Israel's commitment to the peace process. Russia and Germany have also expressed their opposition to Israel's plans.

This comes shortly after the United Nations General Assembly passed a pro-Palestinian draft resolution with an overwhelming majority. Israel immediately announced the building of more settlements after UN voted on Palestine's new "state observer status", Israel's government saying it would carry on building in places of strategic interest. Plans to build on the area are known as "E1" and would divide the Westbank in two. Furthermore, Israel is withholding tax revenue that should go to the Palestinian authority.


In an interview with Al-Jazeera, Raanan Gissin (above), former senior advisor to Ariel Sharon, downplayed those Western statements as some kind of "constructive criticism from friends" rather than a slap into the face of Israel. Nevertheless the current proceedings are obviously expressing harsh criticism from an annoyed community of states that are fed up with turning a blind eye on Israeli policy towards their Semitic brethren in Ghaza and the Westbank.


Raanan Gissin - Faces

Something I remember from a collection of Jewish jokes :
A Jewish merchant is offering a miracle drug intended to improve brain functions. One customer is eager to buy it and test it on the spot. After some time he begins to argue: "100 € such tiny bottle, isn't that much too expensive ?". The Jew appeases his anger: "You see, it's already working !"

As to criticism from Germany there is something remarkable about it. Since 1949 when the German Federal Republic came into being, official politics of the GFR always acknowledged German responsibility when it came to the recompensation of Jews that had suffered from atrocities during the rule of the 3rd Reich. This included material and ideological support for Jews and for the state of Israel as well as a sincere treatment of related historic subjects in the education of Germany's youth (i.e. in schoolbooks and documentations). For the latter item I could serve as a witness. Even more, such politics was compatible with Germany's integration into a U.S. dominated Western alliance.

However, as years and decades went by, it became clear to many Germans of the following post-war generations that such "eternal friendship" with Israel had turned into a ceremonial support of each and every demand and claim from Israel. Yet an increasing number of new voices made themselves heard, telling us that Israel's founders had learnt much from our disreputable ancestors when they decided to erect their new dwellings on the ruins of those belonging to the original inhabitants of Palestine. And I learnt that even some prominent German Jews (namely Hannah Arendt) opposed the way Israel was to be established. Theodor Herzl and the co-founders of Zionism might have imagined the Holy Land to become a homeland for the Jewish nation. But for the more realistic Zionists it could have been a decent corner in South America as well. Now, after so many decades of fighting between Israel's army and furious Palestinians, even Germany is getting annoyed of Israel endangering the fragile status quo of its region which is even better than a devastating war.

First time that ordinary people in Germany noticed there was something wrong with German-Israeli relations was when German author Günther Grass, a laureate of the Nobel Prize for Literature, wrote his poem What Needs to be Said in which he referred to the delivery of German submarines to Israel.

Now, considering the special commitment of German chancellor Angela Merkel with regard to Israel's security, it needs to be said that she came from a totally different environment having been raised by a practising Christian family in the German Democratic Republic, that second German state which perished in 1989. In her life she must have seen one or another of those GDR produced films celebrating German Communist resistance during the 3rd Reich. From there it seemed that all of those concentration camps or ghettos had been filled with honest citizens opposing the Nazi regime, some of them bearing Jewish names but which might have been a mere coincidence. Only to remember the awarded DEFA production "Jakob the Liar". Any responsibility for the mass annihilation of Jews had been categorically rejected by GDR authorities who claimed to represent the "antifascist part of Germany". Maybe, Frau Merkel later felt obliged to correct that picture presented by the land of her origin and promptly fell into an Israeli trap when she declared "German resposibility for the existence of Israel" in her speech before the Knesseth. I doubt that any other high-ranking German politician would dare to make such kind of statement once again, at least not less than a year before Germany's general elections.

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Quotation from: Hannah Arendt and the Origins of Israelophobia

The great antitotalitarian thinker was no friend to the Jewish state.


"... Arendt predicted that even if the Jews won the war, they would degenerate into one of those small warrior tribes about whose possibilities and importance history has amply informed us since the days of Sparta. Their relations with world Jewry would become problematical, since their defense interests might clash at any moment with those of other countries where large numbers of Jews lived. Palestine Jewry would eventually separate itself from the larger body of world Jewry and in its isolation develop into an entirely new people. Thus it becomes plain that at this moment and under present circumstances a Jewish state can only be erected at the price of the Jewish homeland.

Arendt ended the piece by urging that it was “still not too late” to head off the partition of Palestine into Jewish and Arab sections and to prevent the declaration of a Jewish state. "

[Editor's Note: The above cited evaluation by Hannah Arendt can be dated back to 1948.]

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Leseempfehlung für deutsche Leser: Die jüdische Aktivistin Hannah Arendt in Stellungnahmen zu Palästina und Israel.

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Editor's Postscript on December 15, 2012:

On December 11, 2012, the English service of Al-Jazeera reported that Israeli soldiers raided offices of 3 Palestinian civil society organizations in Ramallah, site of the Palestinian administration for the partly occupied Westbank, confiscating and damaging equipment. Entering before dawn, troops broke into the offices of the Women's Union, the Palestinian NGO Network and Addameer, an advocate for Palestinians in Israeli jails. This came shortly after the United Nations' decision to grant a state observer status to Palestine which might enable Palestinian authorities to directly appeal to the international crime court while referring to alleged Israeli war crimes.

As to the "war of shadows" Israel is waging against its many enemies, a comprehensive documentation has been broadcast by German TV channel ZDF on December 14, 2012. That same documentation had already been broadcast before by another German channel (Phoenix) on September 19, 2012. From there, a broader German public could get an idea how Israeli security and the politicians behind them are dealing with anybody opposing their policies. ZDF also showed a report on what we know about Israel's nuclear arsenal and German arms export that needed German politicians to turn a blind eye on Israel's strategic goals.

The Meshaal Affair, September 1997:

Khaled Meshaal, up to now chief of Hamas organization that is now trying to govern the Gaza strip once fell victim to an assassination attempt. On his way from a parking lot to his office in Jordan's capital Amman he was attacked by two Mossad agents using some kind of poison. While Meshaal was near to death, the would-be assassins could be arrested. On hearing about the incident, King Hussein of Jordan made clear that both Mossad agents would be publicly hung if Meshaal died. It then took only hours that former Mossad chief, Danny Yatom, appeared in Amman to deliver the antidote. Meshaal fully recovered. Only some days ago, he arrived in the Gaza strip, for the first time in years, to celebrate the United Nations' decision of December 2012.




It's not my intention to take sides in that dirty war. However, there are aspects in it that need to be named. Many years ago, I became witness to an Intifada bombing when I spent some days in the town of Netanya. On my very first morning in Israel two heavy explosions rocked the town and devastated parts of the local market area. Later, lots of Israelis silently assembled around the bombing site and watched the police doing their work. I then noticed a small and rather shabby shop apparently selling photographic articles at the entrance of the market. It's tiny shop window was entirely filled with the animated dummy of a camera which attracted people to directly look into the fake camera lens that was focusssing the old market's center. If it was what I presumed, it didn't work to prevent the bombing.

Even nowadays, when sophisticated electronic device can be used to survey each and every corner of a densely populated area, any warning will usually come to late. And it must be added that there is no technique the enemy cannot apply as well. Only recently, the overall observation of a Dubai hotel and highly developed means of investigation applied by Dubai police finally convicted Mossad agents who had assassinated one of their targets in his hotel room. An incident that led to just another international scandal raising the question about practical or political benefit of such killing operations. Even though some experts might consider the assassination of nuclear scientists in Iran as a decisive matter, wars cannot be won by killing some learned "pawns".




News from Germany on December 6, 2012:

On Thursday, December 6, the German government decided to provide two military units operating the "Patriot" missile defense system for Turkey after a request from Ankara and NATO headquarters. Both systems are intended to secure the Turkish-Syrian border after impacts of Syrian artillery rockets on Turkish territory. Their installation will be accompanied by a deployment of up to 400 German troops. The Patriot subject has been discussed since November 2012 (screenshot below quoting the November 17 news).


Above picture:
Excerpt from a comprehensive Chinese news article reporting on Germany's December 6 decision at the same time as German News TV launches their short statement.




Guess who's searching for "implanted colonies"!



Thursday, November 29, 2012

Palestine - Up with the People


Latest UPDATE further down !

الأمم المتحدة تمنح فلسطين صفة "دولة مراقب"ـ



Palestine's president Abbas meeting with UN Secretary General
Ban Ki Moon in New York while trying to shore up UN support.


Today, about three hours from now, there will be a vote at the United Nations General Assembly that could bring a status change for the Palestinian territories. That vote is intended to recognise Palestine as a non-observer state, such boosting international recognition of West Bank, Ghaza Strip and East Jerusalem as the State of Palestine.

Even though, this can be regarded as a mere symbolic act that will not remove a single Israeli checkpoint, Palestine would then be able to join the International Criminal Court when it comes to sue Israel for its alleged war crimes. As expected, Israel and the U.S.A. are opposing a change in status for Palestinians. Furthermore, a U.S. aid package averaging $600 million per year could be at stake, together with $210 million in tax revenue that could be withheld by Israel.

Yet, this vote is being expected to pass in the General Assembly as opposition is restricted to a few UN members like the U.S.A., Israel, Britain and most probably Germany while France already declared its support of Palestine.

Editor's Comment:
Even though the act of promoting the people of Palestine might be a rather symbolic act, it should be considered that throughout human history similar symbolic gestures have triggered off important developments. In fact, many collective efforts and even wars have started from such symbolic events.

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UPDATE shortly before UN decision:


Standing ovations for Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas after his speech before the United Nations General Assembly.

Only U.S., Israel and Germany known to obstruct the Palestinian bid.

France, Spain, Portugal, Denmark and Italy have pledged to endorse the Palestinian cause. Britain ready for conditioned support of Palestine.


Israel's ambassador to the United Nations called Palestine an "Iranian terrorist camp". Conjuring up historic events that served the national interest of Israel, he played down the importance of an expected UN decision in favour of Palestine. One international observer noticed Israel's ambassador not mentioning the fact that Israel once as well came into being as a recognised independent state on behalf of a United Nations' decision.

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UPDATE after UN decision:

The pro-Palestinian draft resolution passed in favour of Palestine:

صوتت 138 دولة لصالح القرار و9 ضده وامتنعت 41 دولة
عن التصويت


138 nations voted pro, 9 nations voted no, 41 nations abstained.


After the vote: Israel's ambassador to the UN (above) and celebrating Palestinians in Ramallah (below).




The following day, November 30, German media and German national TV said in their regular news program "Palestine received observer status" which could easily be mixed up with a so-called "non-state observer status" that was held by the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) since 1974. Indeed, the Palestinian territories are now enjoying what is called an "observer state status" which gives them some additional rights and fixes the Palestinians' claim of presenting themselves to the international community as an independent state, even though partly occupied by Israel.

Al-Jazeera named it "non-observer status" while صفة دولة مراقب, the Arabic expression used by Al-Arabiya, is near to "status of a controlling or supervising state" which includes another aspect of the word "observer".

According to different German media, Germany finally decided to abstain from vote after earlier reports of Germany being decided to vote against the pro-Palestinian draft.

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