The Palestinian Authority will ask the United Nations to recognize it as an independent state on the first day of the next session of the General Assembly, September 20. From JTA: The Palestinian Authority will ask the United Nations to recognize Palestine as an independent state on the first day of the body's new session. P.A. President Mahmoud Abbas will take the Palestinian's case to the U.N. on Sept. 20, when he asks U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to present the request to the Security Council, the French news service AFP reported over the weekend. [...] "We will insist on this historic initiative and Ban Ki-moon will present the request to the Security Council," al-Malki said. Lebanon will hold the presidency of the Security Council during September and Qatar will chair the Security Council, making September even more attractive for the request, al-Malki reportedly said. It is believed that the United States will veto the request in the Security Council, but the General...(Read Full Post)