Ireland, Norway and Spain have announced that they intend to formally recognize a Palestinian state from the 28th of May. The countries expressed their decision was “in support of peace”, and not in favor of Hamas, nor against Israel. The controversial move is likely to bolster the global Palestinian cause but further strain relations between Israel and Europe.
The announcement was met with mixed views; Hamas and its rival the Palestinian Authority, who control the West Bank, welcomed and praised the recognition. On the other hand, Israel swiftly condemned the move, warning that it would further destabilize the region, and recalled its ambassadors to all three countries. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced the recognition and claimed it would not bring peace to the peace but rather would act as, “a reward for terrorism”.
Most countries already recognize Palestinian statehood; over 140 of the 193 member states of the United Nations have made their recognition official. As the Gaza war has progressed, Israel has come under increasingly fierce criticism for the mounting civilian casualties; over 35,000 Palestinians have been killed and another 80,000 injured. This has in turn placed more pressure on states to formally recognize Palestine in a bid to make the prospect of a two-state solution viable. The leaders of Norway, Spain and Ireland emphasized that the announcement was made in support of a two-state solution, with Irish the Foreign Minister citing growing impatience with Israel’s lack of “political will” for a Palestinian state.
Meanwhile, the situation on the ground in Gaza continues to deteriorate as Israel continues its Rafah offensive, to the dismay of even its staunchest allies. In fact, the UN said food distribution in Rafah had been suspended due to a lack of supplies and insecurity. In a separate development, the lead prosecutor of the International Criminal Court recently applied for arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas’s leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar for various war crimes. If approved, the warrant would effectively restrict travel for either figure to any country which has signed the Rome Statute, including the UK, France and Germany.
Written by Rakan Pharaon
