The UN is gathering in New York where it will shortly be approached by the Palestinian Authority to ask for recognition of statehood.
Barack Obama has already said this will be rebuffed by the US, which will exercise its veto if it comes before the security council, but the Palestinians are sure to get a majority vote in the general assembly, meaning they will be upgraded to 'member status'.
Will this be a positive move? We ask people on the streets of Ramallah and Jerusalem for their views. Jonathan Freedland explains why this needs to happen for the two-state solution to remain a possibility, while Mehdi Hasan tells us why this is a backward step for the Palestinians.
Hugh Muir then discusses the issue with our Washington correspondent Chris McGreal, Jerusalem correspondent Harriet Sherwood and Comment is Free's Brian Whitaker, who was formerly Middle East editor.
