Erdoğan welcomes UN resolution 'with pleasure'

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday welcomed the UN General Assembly's clear-cut rejection of a U.S. decision on Jerusalem’s status “with great pleasure”.

Erdogan wrote on Twitter: “We welcome with great pleasure the UN General Assembly’s overwhelming support for a historic resolution on Al-Quds Al-Sharif.”

“We expect the Trump administration to rescind without further delay its unfortunate decision, whose illegality has been clearly established by UNGA,” Erdogan wrote.

Erdogan added: “On behalf of myself and the Turkish people, I extend my gratitude to everyone who has been supportive of the cause of Palestine and Al-Quds Al-Sharif.”

The UN on Thursday overwhelmingly adopted a resolution on Jerusalem, calling on the U.S. to withdraw its recognition of the city as Israel's capital, despite threats by the U.S. President Donald Trump to cut aid to those countries who voted against the move.

A total of 128 members voted in favor of the resolution, nine countries voted against and 35 others abstained.

In a statement, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the UN resolution “created a new opportunity for peace efforts” in the region.

“[The UN resolution on Jerusalem] has once again announced to the whole world that those who are right are powerful [in reality] not those who are powerful.”

Yıldırım said Turkey would continue to side with “its Palestinian brothers, humanity, Jerusalem, justice and those who are oppressed”.

International law views the West Bank -- including East Jerusalem -- as “occupied territory” and considers all Jewish settlement building on the land to be illegal.

Jerusalem remains at the heart of the Middle East conflict, with Palestinians hoping that East Jerusalem might eventually serve as the capital of an independent state.