Vote on Palestinian UN bid within two months

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced Tuesday that the bid for the UN recognition of Palestine as a non-member state will be presented and voted on in October or November. During a meeting with some Palestinian intellectuals in his office in Ramallah, Abbas said the UN General Assembly will hold the vote on the Palestinian bid "in either this month or the next month." "We are certain that we will gain this status," Abbas said. The Palestinians tried last year for the UN recognition as a full-member state, but failed to gain the consensus of the UN Security Council member states after the United States opposed. Abbas announced this year at the UN General Assembly that the Palestinians will apply for the status of a non-member state in the United Nations.