Minister of Culture Emad Abou-Ghazi has welcomed UNESCO’s decision to grant Palestine full membership on Monday, saying it is an important step forward which he hoped would be followed by UN recognition.
The Egyptian government is supporting the Palestinian cause and had a role in gathering support for the UNESCO vote, he added.
The Palestinians obtained backing from two thirds of UNESCO's members to become the 195th member of UNESCO, with status as "an observer entity." Of 173 countries that voted from a possible 185, 107 voted in favour, 14 voted against, 52 abstained and 12 were absent.
The United States, Canada, Germany and Holland voted against Palestinian membership. Brazil, Russia, China, India, South Africa and France voted in favour. Britain and Italy abstained.
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