France leads a number of nations recognizing Palestinian state amid anger over Israel’s conduct in Gaza war

By Tara John, Billy Stockwell, CNN

United Nations, New York (CNN) — France and several other Western nations formally declared their recognition of a Palestinian state at the United Nations on Monday in a move that deepens Israel’s international isolation as it pursues its maximalist war aims in Gaza and expands settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Monaco, Malta and Luxembourg declared their support during a summit on a two-state solution in New York, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia. Belgium also declared its recognition but said it can only take legal effect if Hamas is removed and hostages are returned.

Speaking at a summit, French President Emmanuel Macron told the UN General Assembly that recognition of a Palestinian state is the “only solution that will allow for Israel to live in peace,” calling the move a “defeat for Hamas.”

“We must do everything within our power to preserve the very possibility of a two-state solution, Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security,” Macron said.

The recognition of the rights of the Palestinian people “takes nothing away from the rights of the people of Israel, who France supported from day one,” he added.

During Monday’s summit, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called the situation in Gaza “intolerable” and said a two-state solution is the “only way out of this nightmare.”

Pushing back against criticism, he said statehood for Palestinians “is a right, not a reward” and without it, there will be “no peace” in the region.

France’s announcement comes as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Portugal declared recognition over the weekend, joining more than 145 UN member states that already recognize Palestinian statehood.

The move, however, is largely symbolic without support from the United States, which has the power to veto membership and is not attending Monday’s summit.

The summit aims to intensify efforts toward reviving a two-state solution and provide a pathway to peace. But after nearly two years of bloodshed in Gaza, and the proliferation of Israeli outposts in the occupied West Bank, fears are mounting that Palestinian statehood is a fading prospect.

The move to recognize a Palestinian state has led to a furious response in Israel.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the summit, Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon said the US and Israel “will not participate in this charade” and expressed disappointment toward Macron.

“On October 8, you stood with Israel, you spoke about the hostages. Today you’re moving on, you’re leaving the hostages behind,” Danon said, referring to the countries that plan to recognize Palestinian statehood.

At the weekly government meeting on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will fight at the UN and other international forums “against the slanderous propaganda aimed at us,” as well as the calls to create a Palestinian state that he said “will endanger our existence and constitute an absurd prize for terrorism.”

Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, said recognition required “immediate countermeasures: the immediate application of sovereignty in Judea and Samaria and the total dismantling of the ‘Palestinian’ Authority.”  Judea and Samaria is the term usually used in Israel to refer to the occupied West Bank.

Diplomatic push

France’s announcement on Monday makes Israel’s biggest backer, the United States, the sole permanent member of the UN Security Council to not recognize Palestinian statehood.

“This latest wave of recognition also reinforces just how much of an outlier Israel and the US have become on this issue compared to the rest of the world,” Daniel Forti, senior UN analyst at the Crisis Group, told CNN.

Palestinian attempts for UN recognition as a full member state began in 2011. They are currently a non-member observer state, a status that was granted in November 2012.

But the path to becoming a member-state requires at least nine of the 15 members of the Security Council to vote in favor, and none of its five permanent members – the US, France, China, Britain and Russia – to veto it. The US has frequently wielded its veto power in line with Israel’s foreign policy, blocking a Security Council resolution last year that would have recognized a Palestinian state.

France’s announcement puts itself at odds with the US. President Donald Trump last week said he disagreed with the UK over its plans to acknowledge a Palestinian state, but stopped short of saying how he might pressure Israel to end its war.

“Washington knows that recognition could end up being a hollow gesture if it is not backed up by stronger economic, legal, or diplomatic measures to pressure Israel back to the negotiating table,” Forti said in relation to a range of measures such as bilateral sanctions against Israel, EU actions or further diplomatic action at the UN.

The US “is betting that countries will not go much further, at least for the time being,” he added.

Monday’s debate follows the adoption of the New York Declaration earlier this month by 142 UN members. The resolution, which outlines steps toward a two-state solution and backs a Hamas-free government for Palestine, serves as a basis for a peace plan, the Élysée Palace said in a statement on Friday.

“The 22 September initiative is anchored in tangible commitments that the President of the Palestinian Authority has conveyed to President Macron: a law on prisoners, reform of the school system, and the holding of the next elections within an improved electoral framework. Recognition is therefore presented as a lever expected to produce concrete benefits for peace,” the Élysée wrote.

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CNN’s Saskya Vandoorne contributed to this report.