Palestinian Flag Now Flies at the United Nations

Despite staunch opposition from Israel and the U.S., the Palestinian flag was raised Wednesday for the first time at the United Nations.

"It's something unbelievable," said Ahmad Mansour, a Palestinian student who goes to NYU. "Twenty years ago, you couldn't dream of this moment!"

Mansour celebrated the event at Dag Hammarskjold plaza with Imed Abujaish, a civil engineer who'd flown out from Detroit for the occasion.

"On one side, I'm really happy for this huge victory," said Abujaish, "but at the same time, kind of confused about the United Nations, trying to give the Palestinian just a baby step for such a huge case. It's like throwing a bone to a dog."

The flag-raising has alarmed a number of pro-Israel groups.

"It gives greater legitimacy to the Palestinian authority," said Morton Klein, president of the Zionist Organization of America. "And it legitimizes this entity, even though they promote hatred and violence against Jews in their schools, their streets, their sports teams."

Klein said his organization is lobbying Congress to reduce funding for the Palestinian Authority.

The U.N. recently voted to fly the flags of non-member observer States, such as the Palestinian Authority and the Vatican. The U.S. and Israel were among a handful of nations that voted against the measure.