India's Abstention From Voting On Anti-Israel Resolution At UNHRC Not A New Position: MEA On Palestinian FM's Letter

India on Thursday (3 June) defended its decision to abstain from voting on at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on a resolution against Israel.

The UNHRC on 27 May had adopted a resolution drafted by Pakistan on behalf of Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC), that paved way for setting up of an international commission of inquiry to investigate alleged violations of international humanitarian law in Palestinian territory and in Israel.

As many as 24 countries supported the resolution while nine countries opposed it. Meanwhile, 14 countries including India abstained from voting on the resolution.

Following India's abstentation, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki wrote to Indian counterpart S Jaishankar that New Delhi's move to abstain from voting on anti-Israel resolution abstention had gone against the human rights of “all people”.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi, while responding to the queries from mediapersons on Palestinian FM's letter to Jaishankar, said that Palestine had written similar letters to all the countries that abstained during the UNHRC vote.

"The position that we took is not a new position, and we have abstained on previous occasions," the MEA spokesperson said.