Maldives has welcomed the resolution by the United Nations Security Council's UN security council resolution condemning Israeli settlements in the occupied territories as a 'historic step'.
Maldives foreign ministry on Twitter also praised the security council saying that it "is starting to show leadership in bringing Israeli occupation of Palestine to an end."
The security council adopted the landmark resolution demanding Israel halt all settlement building and expansion in the occupied territories after US refused to veto the resolution on Friday.
The resolution, which passed by a 14-0 vote, was met with loud applause in the packed chamber after the US ambassador, Samantha Power, abstained.
The move was immediately condemned as “shameful” by the office of the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. A spokesman pointedly referred to Israel’s expectation of working more closely with the US president-elect, Donald Trump.
On Saturday Netanyahu said Israel would reassess its ties with the UN and had ordered a review of the funding of UN institutions and the presence of UN representatives in Israel.
The security council last adopted a resolution critical of settlements in 1979, with the US abstaining then too. The US vetoed a similar resolution in 2011, which was the sole veto cast by the President Barrack Obama administration at the security council.
The biggest hindrance to the peace talks between Israel and Palestine is the illegal settlement of 'Jewish flats' on Palestinian land. Over 500,000 Israelis are living in 140 areas settled illegally on Palestinian land on the Western Bank since 1967.
