Palestine: we want UN vote for statehood

The Palestinian Authority confirms that it will seek recognition as a state at the United Nations, Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat told the Voice of Palestine radio station on Sunday. Erekat told the station that the Palestinians would initiate peaceful demonstrations this month to draw world's attention to their appeal at the UN and did not intend to enter into any clashes with the Israeli forces at the Palestinian territories. He also asked the U.S. and Europe to support the Palestinians and approve their statehood as most of countries in the world had done, the radio station said. New York Times said on Saturday quoting U.S. senior officials and foreign diplomats that the Obama administration circulated a proposal for renewed peace talks with the Israelis in the hopes of persuading the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, to abandon the bid for recognition at the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly beginning September 20. The paper also said that the administration made it clear to Abbas that it would veto any request presented to the UN Security Council to make a Palestinian state a new member, but the United States did not have enough support to block a vote.