House backs negotiated statehood for Palestine

The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly rejected the Palestinian pursuit of statehood through the United Nations and backed a negotiated settlement as the way to peace with Israel.

The vote was 407-6 for the non-binding resolution that also recommended that the Obama administration consider suspending aid to the Palestinian Authority in light of the deal between that government and Hamas, the dominant power in Gaza that is considered a terrorist group by Israel and the United States.

The resolution said the goal was two states, “a democratic Jewish state of Israel and a viable, democratic Palestinian state, living side-by-side in peace, security and mutual recognition”.

The chamber had debated the measure on Wednesday but postponed the vote to ensure politicians had a chance to vote. Republicans and Democrats signalled their strong support for Israel and a resumption of direct negotiations that collapsed last year.

“We stand by Israel as our most valued ally. It is time for the Palestinian Authority to accept a peaceful solution to this conflict,” said house Republican majority leader Eric Cantor.

Rep Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the number two Democrat in the House, said he strongly believed that to ensure “the long-term viability of the Jewish democratic state, peace must be negotiated. It cannot and will not be imposed from outside”.

The administration has said the Palestinian push for a UN vote on its statehood late this year had not helped the peace process, a point echoed by politicians.

“What, exactly, would UN General Assembly recognition of a Palestinian state do for the Palestinians? Absolutely nothing,” said Rep Howard Berman, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee. “It would be seen by Israel and many others as an act of bad faith, creating yet another obstacle to successful talks.”

Rep Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the committee’s Republican chairwoman, raised the prospect of cutting off aid.

“Continuing to provide assistance to the Palestinians – assistance amounting to 2.5 billion dollars in the last five years alone – is certainly not the answer,” she said.

Separately, Rep Nita Lowey, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Foreign Operations Sub-committee, sent a letter to her colleagues urging them to condemn an international flotilla trying to break Israel’s sea blockade of the Gaza Strip.

She called it a “political endeavour that will do little more than raise tensions and set back the peace process”.