By Agence France-Presse
French President Emmanuel Macron officially recognized a Palestinian state at the United Nations on Monday, spurring a wave of Western moves to defy Israel in making the landmark—if symbolic—move.
Macron, speaking at a summit that Israel and its chief backer, the United States, did not attend, called for an end to the war in Gaza.
“The time for peace has come, as we are just moments away from no longer being able to seize it,” Macron said in an address in the General Assembly.
“The time has come to free the 48 hostages held by Hamas. The time has come to stop the war, the bombings of Gaza, the massacres and the displacement.”
Macron, however, said France would not open an embassy to a Palestinian state until a ceasefire is in place in Gaza and all hostages are released.
The Palestinian Authority hailed France’s “historic and courageous” decision and its delegation gave him a standing ovation.
Australia, Britain, Canada, and Portugal also recognized a Palestinian state, piling pressure on Israel as it intensifies its war in Gaza.
Monaco, Belgium, Andorra, Malta, and Luxembourg then all recognized from the General Assembly podium, bringing the total number of recognitions to three-quarters of UN membership.
Spain, Ireland, and Norway already recognized a Palestinian state in May, and Sweden did so in 2014.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed not to allow a Palestinian state and far-right members of his cabinet have threatened to annex the West Bank to make statehood impossible.
Israel’s UN ambassador Danny Danon said Israel “will take action.”
“They are not promoting peace. They are supporting terrorism,” he said.
US President Donald Trump “believes (recognizing) is a reward to Hamas,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told Agence France-Presse ahead of the summit: “We should not feel intimidated by the risk of retaliation.”
Palestinian Authority presses Hamas
The war was unleashed when Hamas attacked Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, bringing a relentless counterattack by Israel.
An independent state would be centered around the Palestinian Authority, which exerts limited control in the West Bank and is the rival of Gaza-based Hamas.
Israel has sought to minimize the distinction between the two, and Washington, in an unusual step, refused to allow Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas to attend.
The 89-year-old veteran Palestinian leader, forced to address the summit virtually, called on Hamas to surrender its weapons to his Palestinian Authority.
“We also condemn the killing and detention of civilians, including Hamas actions on October 7, 2023,” he said.
France co-hosted the summit with Saudi Arabia, which has flirted with normalization with Israel, a top goal for Netanyahu.
The Saudi foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, told the summit that concluded late Monday that all countries should follow suit and recognize a Palestinian state.
Limited practical effect
Germany, Italy, and Japan, while all critical of Israel’s actions in Gaza, are among major US allies that declined to recognize a Palestinian state.
“A negotiated two-state solution is the path that can allow Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace, security and dignity,” German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said.
Britain, which backed a Jewish homeland in 1917, said it would back off recognizing a Palestinian state if Israel agreed to a Gaza ceasefire.
Instead, Israel launched a massive new campaign aimed at seizing Gaza City.
But recognition, while historic, is unlikely to change facts on the ground.
“Unless backed up by concrete measures, recognizing Palestine as a state risks becoming a distraction from the reality, which is an accelerating erasure of Palestinian life in their homeland,” said the International Crisis Group’s Israel-Palestine project director, Max Rodenbeck.
The Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,219 Israelis, mostly civilians, according to official data.
Israeli military operations since then have killed 65,344 Palestinians, mostly civilians, says the Hamas-run health ministry, figures the UN considers reliable.
