Palestinians are awaiting word on whether UN Security Council representatives will soon visit Gaza and the West Bank. Council President Sacha Sergio Llorenty Soliz announced on Oct. 3 that he plans to arrange a trip in October, but did not specify a date or a possible agenda. Security Council visiting missions have in the past traveled to several regions around the world to assess the situation in conflict zones.

The last time a Security Council delegation sought to organize a visit to the Palestinian territories was in 2012, but the United States opposed the idea before it was even put to a vote. Until now, the council had refrained from proposing another visit, perhaps to avoid another clash with the United States, which as one of the five permanent members of the Security Council can quash such initiatives.

A high-ranking official close to Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas who spoke to Al-Monitor on the condition of anonymity, remarked, “Palestinian diplomacy has been making persistent efforts to see the visit through for months by contacting our friends at the Security Council. But, we are seriously concerned that the US might play its veto card. In that case, we will resort to Plan B, which is demanding a non-official visit from the countries willing to come to the Palestinian territories.”

Palestinians believe it would be useful for Security Council representatives to see firsthand the suffering caused by Israeli policies and actions toward Gaza, rather than reading about them in reports. The council holds an open discussion on the Palestinian issue and developments surrounding it every three months. The most recent session was in July, when Nickolay Mladenov, UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, presented his report on the Palestinian territories, addressing Israeli settlements and their illegitimacy, the humanitarian situation in Gaza, the ongoing Israeli occupation, administrative arrests and child imprisonment.