President Emmanuel Macron has said that France would formally recognise Palestinian statehood during a United Nations (UN) meeting in September, going on to become the most powerful European nation to announce such a move.

 

 

The announcement comes as at least 142 countries recognise or plan to recognise Palestinian statehood since Israel increased bombardments under the genocide against Palestinians in Gaza nearly two years ago.

 

 

Macron’s announcement drew immediate anger from Israel and the United States (US) who continue to strongly oppose the decisions.

 

 

While the US has France’s announcement a “reckless decision that only serves Hamas’ propaganda”, Israeli Prime Minister (PM) Benjamin Netanyahu said it “rewarded terror” and posed an existential threat to Israel.

 

 

“It is a slap in the face to the victims of October 7th,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote on X, alluding to Hamas’ attack on Israel in 2023.

 

 

Netanyahu said the decision “risked creating another Iranian proxy, just as Gaza became”, which would be “a launch pad to annihilate Israel – not to live in peace beside it”.

 

 

Senior Palestinian Authority official Hussein al-Sheikh welcomed the move, saying it “reflected France's commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people's rights to self-determination and the establishment of our independent state”.

 

 

Hamas hailed Macron's pledge as a “positive step in the right direction toward doing justice to oppressed Palestinian people and supporting their legitimate right to self-determination”.

 

 

“We call on all countries of the world – especially European nations and those that have not yet recognised the State of Palestine – to follow France's lead,” it added.

 

 

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the humanitarian situation in Gaza had become “unsustainable” and urged Israel to change course. He said the conflict had reached a stage where “people were dying of hunger, and that was indefensible”. Starmer repeated his call for an immediate ceasefire, saying it could “open the path towards recognising a Palestinian state” and stressed that Palestinians had an “inalienable right” to statehood.

 

 

He confirmed he would hold talks with France and Germany to discuss “stopping the killing and getting food to people who desperately need it". The UK, along with 27 other countries, recently signed a statement urging Israel to lift restrictions on aid deliveries, warning that its current policy “deprives Gazans of human dignity”.

 

 

International concern is growing about the plight of the more than two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where the fighting has triggered a dire humanitarian crisis and warnings of mass starvation.

 

 

Israel has rejected accusations it is responsible for Gaza’s deepening hunger crisis, which the World Health Organization has called “man-made” and France blamed on an Israeli blockade.

 

 

Macron said the urgent priority today was to end the war in Gaza and rescue the civilian population.

 

 

“We must finally build the State of Palestine, ensure its viability and enable it, by accepting its demilitarisation and fully recognising Israel, to contribute to the security of all in the Middle East,” he wrote on social media.

 

 

On the streets of the occupied West Bank, Palestinians told AFP that they hoped other countries would now follow suit.

 

 

Macron said he intended to make the announcement at the UN General Assembly in September.

 

 

It merits a mention that Norway, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia all announced recognition following the outbreak of the Gaza conflict, along with several other non-European countries. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, whose country already recognises Palestinian statehood, welcomed Macron's announcement.

 

 

“Together, we must protect what Netanyahu is trying to destroy. The two-state solution is the only solution,” the Socialist leader, an outspoken critic of Israel's offensive in Gaza, wrote on X.

 

 

Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry hailed Macron's announcement as “historic” and urged other countries to follow suit.

 

 

Ireland's Foreign Minister Simon Harris in a post on X called France's move “the only lasting basis for peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians alike”.

 

 

Israel's military campaign in Gaza has so far killed 59,587 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in Gaza.