Palestinians Seeking Statehood at UN May Get Same Rights as Pope Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In Bloomberg - September 8, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas won’t walk away from the United Nations General Assembly this month with the sought-after statehood. More likely, he’ll get parity with the world’s smallest state led by Pope Benedict XVI. Support for the upgrade in Palestinian status at the UN from “entity” to “non-member state” is likely if the matter is brought to a vote in the 193-member assembly, where a two- thirds majority, or 129 votes, is required. » Read more