9 December, 2018
Sri Lanka has abstained from voting at a United States-sponsored resolution seeking to condemn Hamas, the Palestinian group administering the besieged Gaza Strip.
The resolution failed to cross the threshold, with 86 nations voting in favour and 57 voting against. Thirty-three countries abstained from voting including Sri Lanka, India, Afghanistan, Kenya, Nepal, Philippines and Thailand.
The United Nations General Assembly rejected the US-sponsored resolution which was backed strongly by Israel, which needed a two-thirds majority to be passed, following an earlier vote in the Assembly.