France and the United Kingdom are among the countries preparing to formally recognize a state of Palestine, a move by two permanent members of the U.N. Security Council that would deepen their split with Israel and the United States over the 22-month war in Gaza. The planned recognition, expected as early as September, could mark a turning point. While France appears ready to move unconditionally, Britain and Canada have tied their decision to actions by Israel or the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The shift reflects mounting global outrage over the humanitarian toll in Gaza, including reports of widespread starvation in the besieged territory. More than 145 countries recognize a state of Palestine.
The move also serves to “put a shot across the bow of Israel,” says Michael Lynk, a former U.N. independent expert on human rights in the Palestinian territories. For the nations choosing to recognize a state of Palestine, it signals to the world that they are “annoyed, upset [and] distressed by Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that recognizing a Palestinian state “rewards Hamas’s monstrous terrorism & punishes its victims.” Palestinian Authority officials welcomed the announcements by France and the U.K., while the BBC reported that Hamas called France’s action a “positive step.”
