Palestine: State of play
The dawn of a Palestinian state has been a long time coming. After 65 years of dispossession, 45 years of occupation, and 20 years of failed peace attempts, on Thursday Palestine took one step closer to joining the community of nations. With a final vote of 138 to 9, an overwhelming majority of nations at the UN General Assembly voted to recognise Palestine as a non-member state. This upgrade puts Palestine on par with the Vatican, and also could allow Palestinian claims to be filed in the International Criminal Court. This recognition came just days after another in the long line of catastrophes Palestinians have faced. Under a brutal Israeli bombardment of Gaza, nearly 200 Palestinians were killed and hundreds more were wounded. Empire asks: Must the Palestinian dream of a state be Israel's nightmare? And what does the path to a just solution look like?
More from 2012
Episode 1
Tunisia: A revolutionary model?
A year after the Jasmine Revolution, can the country's new government ... herald a return to narrow, sectarian rule or consensual leadership?
Episode 2
Egypt: The promise and perils of revolution
With so much still undecided, did Egypt experience a popular uprising, Islamic revolution or military coup?
Episode 3
Syria on the brink
As global and regional powers fight their own battles, will Syria's revolution succeed before the country falls apart?
Episode 4
Putin's Russia
As Vladimir Putin won a third term as president, we ask if Russia can become a superpower once again.
Episode 5
Europe: To Be or Not To Be
As Europe's crisis worsens without any solution in sight is a shift in political power a sign of hope on the horizon?
Episode 6
Egypt: A second republic?
After the first truly democratic elections in a generation, will Egypt become a secular, religious, or military state?
