Paris – The global movement for Palestinians to be granted their own state has been reignited by Israel’s over seven-month conflict in Gaza since the October 7 attack. Norway, Spain, and Ireland all announced intentions on Wednesday to recognize a state of Palestine, a departure from the long-standing stance of Western powers that a Palestinian state can only be established as part of a negotiated peace with Israel.
142 of the 193 member countries of the United Nations have already recognized a state of Palestine, according to the Palestinian Authority, which has limited powers in certain areas of the occupied West Bank. They encompass numerous Middle Eastern, African, and Asian nations; however, they do not include the United States, Canada, the majority of western Europe, Australia, Japan, or South Korea.
The United States exercised its veto at the United Nations Security Council in April to thwart a Palestinian attempt to become a complete member state of the organization.
The following is a glance back at the Palestinians’ pursuit of statehood and the countries that have already recognized Palestine as a state:
Early recognitions and a Palestinian declaration
Yasser Arafat unilaterally declared an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital during the first Palestinian intifada, or uprising, on November 15, 1988.
He made the announcement in Algiers during a meeting of the exiled Palestinian National Council, which has adopted the two-state solution as its objective. This solution envisions the coexistence of independent Israeli and Palestinian states.
Algeria became the first country to officially recognize an independent Palestinian state minutes later.
Many other countries, such as India, Turkey, most of Africa, and several central and eastern European countries, had adopted this approach within weeks.
During a period of crisis in the Middle East peace process, the subsequent surge of recognitions occurred in late 2010 and early 2011. A number of South American countries, such as Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, responded to the Palestinians’ requests to support their statehood claims.
This was in response to Israel’s decision to lift an interim prohibition on the construction of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The United States and Israel are incensed by the recognition of Palestine by UNESCO.
The Palestinians resolved to continue their campaign for full U.N. membership for a State of Palestine in 2011, as peace negotiations were at an impasse.
Despite the failure of the endeavor, the United Nations’ cultural agency, UNESCO, voted on October 31, that year, to recognize the Palestinians as complete members.
Israel and the United States responded with fury, suspending their funding of the Paris-based organization in response to the decision.
They unilaterally withdrew from UNESCO in 2018, although the United States re-entered the organization in 2023.
After the General Assembly voted overwhelmingly several years prior to the event, the Palestinian flag was raised for the first time at the United Nations in New York in September 2015. The Palestinians were upgraded to the status of “non-member observer state.”
Palestine was also admitted as a state party to the International Criminal Court three years later. On Tuesday, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) disclosed that he was pursuing arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his defense minister, and three of Hamas’ most prominent figures in connection with suspected war crimes that occurred in Israel and Gaza on October 7 and thereafter.
Sweden distinguishes itself from the group.
Sweden, which has a substantial Palestinian population, was the first EU member in western Europe to acknowledge a Palestinian state in 2014.
Following months of nearly daily confrontations in the Israeli-annexed eastern part of Jerusalem, the decision was made to relocate.
Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Romania had previously acknowledged Palestine as a sovereign state.
Stockholm’s action elicited an angry response from Israel, as evidenced by the statement of former foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman to the Swedes that “relations in the Middle East are a lot more complex than the self-reassembling furniture of IKEA.”
The Gaza war has increased the support for Palestinian statehood.
In response to Hamas’ murder of over 1,170 individuals in Israel on October 7, Israel’s unremitting offensive in Gaza, which has resulted in the deaths of at least 35,647 individuals, has reignited European support for Palestinian statehood. This information is sourced from the health ministry of the Hamas-controlled territory.
Norway, Spain, and Ireland have publicly declared their intention to acknowledge a Palestinian state by May 28, despite Israel’s threats to recall its envoys from Ireland and Norway for discussions regarding the matter.
“Readiness to recognize Palestine” was also expressed by Malta and Slovenia in March, provided that “the circumstances are appropriate.”
Additionally, Australia has recently considered the possibility of unilaterally endorsing Palestinian statehood.
President Emmanuel Macron has also stated that the issue of recognizing a Palestinian state in the absence of a negotiated settlement is no longer “a taboo for France.”
