About three-quarters of countries in the United Nations (UN) recognize the Palestinian state, which holds a “Permanent Observer State” status within the intergovernmental body — allowing it to be part of the proceedings, but unable to vote on resolutions.
Three more countries — close U.S. allies — have joined the tally in the last week.
Last week, France said that it would recognize Palestinian statehood, with President Emmanuel Macron stating the move is part of a commitment to a “just and lasting peace” in the Middle East.
France became the first nation within the Group of Seven (G7) to do so.
The announcement came shortly after negotiations over a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas broke down, with the Jewish State and the U.S. pulling their negotiators from Qatar. President Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff pinned the blame on Hamas and argued that the officials will consider “alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza.”
Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., Danny Danon, said last week that “neither international conferences disconnected from reality nor unilateral statements at the UN will lead to peace.”
Then this week, as the international outrage over the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip has continued, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the United Kingdom was ready to recognize Palestine’s statehood if Israel does not manage to take action of ending the war with Hamas, a conflict that has been ongoing since the Palestinian militant group’s terrorist attack on the Jewish State on Oct. 7, 2023.
Starmer set the deadline for the UN’s General Assembly in September, calling for an uptick in aid being delivered into the war-torn enclave and for Hamas to release the remaining hostages.
“I’ve always said that we will recognize a Palestinian state as a contribution to a proper peace process at the moment of maximum impact for the two-state solution, with that solution now under threat, this is the moment to act,” Starmer said.
Canada became the third close U.S. ally this week to announce it would recognize the Palestinian state.
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney said Ottawa would provide recognition of the state in September at the UN’s General Assembly, a decision that would entail the Palestinian Authority “holding general elections in 2026 in which Hamas can play no part, and to demilitarize the Palestinian state.”
Trump said on Truth Social that Canada’s decision would make it hard for the U.S. to reach a trade agreement with Ottawa.
On Monday, the president said that the U.S. would set up “food centers” in Gaza as food distribution in the enclave has come under intense scrutiny and deaths of Gazans from starvation.
Trump also acknowledged that there is starvation among the roughly 2.1 million population in Gaza, sharing a different view from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said that no one is starving in the enclave.
The White House said on Thursday that Witkoff and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee would be in Gaza on Friday to “inspect the current distribution sites and secure a plan to deliver more food and meet with local Gazans to hear first-hand about this dire situation on the ground.”
