UN Security Council panel fails to agree on Palestinian statehood bid

"A UN Security Council committee said on Friday it had failed to reach agreement over a Palestinian application for full membership in the United Nations, the Portuguese UN ambassador said.

The decision by the council's admissions committee brought the Palestinian Authority's push for UN recognition of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, one step closer to collapse.

It is now up to Palestinians, who have so far been unable to secure the nine votes needed to pass a Security Council resolution favoring their UN bid, to decide whether or not to call a vote on their application."