Abbas to assume chairmanship of UN's Group of 77

Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas arrived in New York City on Monday to assume the chairmanship of a major bloc of developing countries at the United Nations, JTA reported.

Abbas on Tuesday will succeed Egypt as the leader of the Group of 77. In October, the United Nations General Assembly voted in favor of allowing the PA to chair the group in 2019, thus allowing the PA to act more like a full UN member state during meetings in 2019.