Israel was selected on Monday to lead a permanent committee of the United Nations General Assembly for the first time in its history.

“This is a historic achievement for the State of Israel. We broke the glass ceiling,” Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said. While Israel has headed some minor committees before, and once co-chaired the General Assembly, it has never before headed one of the UN’s main committees.

Despite intense lobbying by Arab and Muslim countries, Danon won the secret ballot vote to head the Sixth Committee, which deals with legal issues. The committee is scheduled to discuss international law and issues surrounding fighting terrorism. “Israel is a world leader in international law and in fighting terrorism. We are pleased to have the opportunity to share our knowledge with the countries of the world,” Danon said.

Israel had been nominated by the UN’s Western European and Others Group, which Israel joined temporarily in 2000 and permanently in 2013. UN chairmanships are normally allocated on a rotating basis to different regional groups, who traditionally can name a representative without having to hold a vote. However, the delegation from Yemen demanded to hold a vote that could include all 193 UN member states. Despite opposition from Iran and other members of the Non-Aligned Movement, Israel won the vote, leading to congratulations from a number of Western diplomats.

Congratulations Ambassador Danon on your election: important for Israel & important for the UN. Good luck! https://t.co/xIhBXCpevQ — Martin Weiss (@martinoweiss) June 14, 2016

“We will not allow dictatorships and anti-Israel countries to harm our standing in the international community,” Danon said. “Those who tried to block our appointment would be well advised to take note of the jurisdiction of this committee, as they have much to learn about international law.”

“Time after time, whenever Israel comes up with a candidate for a post or an initiative, there is an attempt by the Arab Group to challenge Israel,” Daniel Meron, chief of the Israel Foreign Ministry’s UN and international organizations division, told the Times of Israel. This behavior is on display even when Israel proposes ideas to help developing countries, he said, adding that the single-minded opposition to anything Israeli “is ridiculous behavior. It singles them out, not Israel.”

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said in a press release that Danon’s election was “shameful and disrespectful to UN rules and bylaws.” Two years ago, Abu Zuhri called on Palestinians to act as human shields by gathering at locations targeted for Israeli air strikes, in violation of the international laws of war.

[Photo: IsraelinUN / YouTube ]