Click to view full size

The U.N. Gen­er­al As­sem­bly is bring­ing high-lev­el of­fi­cials to­geth­er this week to pro­mote a two-state so­lu­tion to the decades-old Is­rael-Pales­tin­ian con­flict that would place their peo­ples side by side, liv­ing in peace in in­de­pen­dent na­tions.

Is­rael and its close al­ly the Unit­ed States are boy­cotting the two-day meet­ing, which starts Mon­day and will be co-chaired by the for­eign min­is­ters of France and Sau­di Ara­bia. Is­rael’s right-wing gov­ern­ment op­pos­es a two-state so­lu­tion, and the Unit­ed States has called the meet­ing “coun­ter­pro­duc­tive” to its ef­forts to end the war in Gaza. France and Sau­di Ara­bia want the meet­ing to put a spot­light on the two-state so­lu­tion, which they view as the on­ly vi­able road map to peace, and to start ad­dress­ing the steps to get there.

The meet­ing was post­poned from late June and down­grad­ed from a four-day meet­ing of world lead­ers amid surg­ing ten­sions in the Mid­dle East, in­clud­ing Is­rael’s 12-day war against Iran and the war in Gaza.