Rubio began his trip with a visit to the Western Wall for prayer. Even after last week's Israeli strike on Hamas leaders in Qatar, a US ally, Netanyahu insisted the US-Israel relationship is solid.

"My extraordinary friend, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and his wife Jeanette, I think his visit here is a testament to the durability, the strength of the Israeli-American alliance. It's as strong and as durable as the stones of the Western Wall that we just touched," Netanyahu declared.

The UN's vote in New York on Friday was 142 to 10, with 12 abstentions, to pass the Palestinian state resolution, in diplomatic speak titled, The New York Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine.

The "no" votes came from Israel, the United States, Argentina, Hungary, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, and Tonga.

Israel's Ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, sharply criticized the vote, saying, "This one-sided declaration will not be remembered as a step toward peace, only as another hollow gesture that weakens this Assembly's credibility. This is not diplomacy. It is theatre. A carefully staged performance for headlines, not for peace. It doesn't shorten the war. It prolongs it. It does not weaken Hamas. It rewards them. It does not advance negotiations. It undermines them."

The Trump administration called the vote "a gift for Hamas," and after the UN action, a number of Israeli Knesset ministers called for the government to annex the West Bank.

Justice Minister Yariv Levin echoed the US description of the vote as a reward for terrorism and declared, "The land of Israel belongs to the people of Israel. Even the UN decision will not change that. It is time to apply sovereignty to Judea, Samaria, and the Jordan Valley. This is the appropriate Zionist response." Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here

Chris Mitchell: CBN News Middle East Bureau Chief

To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE

4 Ways Christians Can Pray for the Situation in Iran

New Media Network Combats Anti-American Spin by Featuring Veterans, Law Enforcement

South Dakota Supreme Court Rules 'Transgender' Individuals Can't Change Birth Certificates

Evil: Oregon Democrats Block Bill Requiring Medical Care for Babies Born Alive after Abortions

Oil Prices Dip as Trump Says Iran Conflict Is 'Ahead of Schedule'

3-Hour Airport Security Lines, TSA Working Without Pay during Democrat Gov Shutdown

Democrats Slammed for Shutting Down DHS amid Terrorism Threats

Nation on High Alert after NYC Attack, as Suspects Aligned with Islamic State; Meanwhile Dems Continue Shutdown of Homeland Security

Evangelical Leaders Return to Oval Office to Pray over Trump

Terrorists Transformed into Evangelists: YWAM Reports Powerful Stories of Redemption in Nigeria

Jesse Jackson's Democrat Son CALLS OUT Obama, Biden, and Clinton for Politicizing His Father's Funeral: They 'Do Not Know Jesse Jackson'

Trump Threatens Not to Sign New Legislation until Senate Passes SAVE America Act

Making History: President Trump Inaugurates Very First 'Shield of the Americas' Coalition with Leaders of Hispanic America [Video]

Media Ignored Gabbard's 2025 Islamization Warning, but Hill GOPers Are Taking Action

NYC: Counter-Protester Lights Explosive amid Anti-Mamdani Protest, Utters 'Allahu Akbar'

Iran's Regime Confirms New Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei Already 'Is Wounded'

Trump Pressures Australia and PM Gives In: Grants Refuge to Entire National Women's Football Team of Iran, after 5 Defected

Devout Jew Decides to Disprove Scripture by Reading the Bible; Is 'Blown Away' by What He Finds

South Dakota Passes Prenatal Development Education Bill

How Is a Free Cuba in the National Interest of the United States?