Starmer announces UK recognition of Palestinian state

BBC:

Sir Keir Starmer has announced the UK’s recognition of a Palestinian state, in what represents a significant change in government policy.

In a video statement on X, the prime minister said “in the face of the growing horror in the Middle East we are acting to keep alive the possibility of peace and a two-state solution”.

Australia and Canada also announced formal recognition of the state of Palestine on Sunday, with Portugal expected to follow.

The decision has drawn fierce criticism from the Israeli government, families of hostages held in Gaza and some Conservatives. Recognition “would endanger our existence and serve as absurd reward for terrorism,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday.

Both the Israeli and US governments say recognition is a diplomatic gift for Hamas following its attack in southern Israel on 7 October 2023 in which 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage.

The prime minister said in July the UK would shift its position unless Israel met several conditions, including agreeing to a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and committing to a long-term peace process leading to a Palestinian state co-existing alongside Israel.

Successive UK governments have previously said recognition should come as part of a peace process and at a time of maximum impact.

However, ministers argued there was a moral responsibility to keep hopes of a long-term peace alive.

Efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza – let alone a long-term solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict – have faltered. Israel sparked international outrage when it recently carried out an air strike on a Hamas negotiating team in Qatar.

Government sources said the situation on the ground had worsened significantly in the last few weeks, citing images showing starvation and violence in Gaza that Sir Keir previously described as “intolerable”.

On Sunday, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said 71 people were killed and 304 injured in Israeli attacks in the past 24 hours.

Israel’s latest ground operation in Gaza City, described by a UN official as “cataclysmic”, has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee.