Palestinians wait for travel permits to Egypt at Rafah Crossing, southern Gaza Strip, on Feb. 7, 2018. (Xinhua/Wissam Nassar)
UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is expected to address the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday, demanding the implementation of the two-state solution between his country and Israel,including opposition to U.S. President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.
Diplomats said Monday Abbas will bring up the Palestinian request for establishing an independent sovereign Arab state on the 1949 Armistice lines known as the "1967 borders".
The Security Council will convene Tuesday for its monthly meeting. The item on the agenda is the Middle East situation, including the "Palestinian question".
A Palestinian youth holds a banner in Gaza City on Feb. 20, 2018 during a general strike to protest the humanitarian situation in Gaza. The writing in Arabic reads, "Gaza's children are dying, can anyone help?" (Xinhua/AFP)
Nickolay Mladenov, special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, is expected to brief the Security Council, providing an update on the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, the Israeli settlement construction, and the intra-Palestinian agreement.
In his briefing to the Security Council last month, he referred to plans by the Israeli Government to approve construction of additional settlements and said the construction is illegal under international law. He called it one of the major obstacles to peace.
There is heightened tension on the Israel-Palestine issue, following the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and the Security Council's subsequent vote on a draft resolution, reaffirming that any decisions and actions that purport to have altered the status of Jerusalem are null and void.
The text was vetoed by the United States. Following the veto, a nearly identical text was adopted at the General Assembly with 128 votes in favor, nine votes against, 35 abstentions and 21 absences.
A Palestinian protester uses a slingshot to hurl stones at Israeli troops during clashes near the border between Israel and east Gaza Strip, on Feb. 16, 2018. A total of 40 Palestinian demonstrators were wounded in clashes with Israeli soldiers in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank on Friday afternoon, local sources said. (Xinhua/Wissam Nassar)
In a speech before the Central Council of the Palestine Liberation Organization in January, Abbas vowed to reject U.S. involvement in any peace talks and strongly criticized Trump.
In response, the Trump administration announced it would cut the 125-million-U.S.-dollar funding it had planned to provide the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East this year by 65 million dollars.
Palestinian employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) take part in a protest against the Washington's decision to reduce the fund provided to UNRWA in Gaza City on Jan. 29, 2018. (Xinhua/Wissam Nassar)
During the Security Council's quarterly open debate on the issue on Jan. 25, the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., Nikki Haley, harshly criticized Abbas, questioning his will to pursue peace.
On Thursday, Security Council President Kuwait, joined by Bolivia, France and Sweden, is expected to host an Arria-formula meeting on "Prospects for the two-state solution for peace".
