145 countries now recognize a Palestinian state including Spain, Ireland and Norway.
Norway, Spain and Ireland on Tuesday became the latest countries to recognize a state of Palestine, breaking with the long-held view of Western powers that Palestinians can only gain statehood as part of a negotiated peace with Israel.
Their move, which has infuriated Israel, brings to 145 out of the 193 UN member states that have recognized a Palestinian state.
They include many Middle Eastern, African and Asian countries, but not the United States, Canada, most of western Europe, Australia, Japan or South Korea. In April, the United States used its veto at the UN Security Council to prevent a Palestinian bid to become a full UN member state.
Israel’s relentless offensive in Gaza, which has left at least 36,050 people dead, according to the territory’s health ministry, in retaliation for Hamas’s killing of more than 1,170 people in Israel, has boosted support in Europe for Palestinian statehood.
After months of warnings, Norway, Spain and Ireland on Tuesday finally took the step, with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez describing it as a matter of “historic justice.”
Malta and Slovenia have also expressed “readiness” to recognize a Palestinian state when “the circumstances are right”. Australia too has floated the possibility of endorsing Palestinian statehood and President Emmanuel Macron has also said the question is no longer “a taboo for France” while insisting it must be done at the “right moment”.
He made the announcement in Algiers, at a meeting of the exiled Palestinian National Council, which adopted the two-state solution as a goal, with independent Israeli and Palestinian states existing side-by-side.
Minutes later, Algeria became the first country to officially recognize an independent Palestinian state.