After nods to Palestinian state, Israel PM vows it won’t exist

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Britain, Australia, Canada and Portugal recognized the State of Palestine on Sunday, drawing ire from Israel’s leader and a rebuke from the United States (US).

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed in response that a Palestinian state would never exist.

“It will not happen. No Palestinian state will be established west of the Jordan River,” Netanyahu said.

He also vowed to expand Jewish settlements in the West Bank, which Israel has controlled since 1967 in an occupation considered illegal under international law.

The US also criticized the moves as “performative” and said it was focused on finding a diplomatic solution to the Israel-Hamas conflict.

The staunch ally of Israel said its “focus remains on serious diplomacy, not performative gestures.”

“Our priorities are clear: the release of the hostages, the security of Israel, and peace and prosperity for the entire region that is only possible free from Hamas,” a State Department spokesperson said on condition of anonymity.

United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain was formally recognizing the State of Palestine “to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution.”

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the move “recognizes the legitimate and long held aspirations of the people of Palestine,” while Portuguese Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel called the two-state solution “the only path to a just and lasting peace.”

Britain and Canada became the first members of the Group of Seven advanced economies to take the step.

Other countries, including France, are also due to recognize a Palestinian state during key talks at the annual United Nations (UN) General Assembly opening on Monday in New York.

Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip welcomed the recognition as a victory.

On the ground in Gaza, many saw recognition as an affirmation of their existence after nearly two years of war between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.

“This recognition shows that the world is finally starting to hear our voice and that in itself is a moral victory,” said Salwa Mansour, 35, who has been displaced from the southern city of Rafah to Al-Mawasi.

“Despite all the pain, death and massacres we’re living through, we cling to anything that brings even the smallest bit of hope,” she added.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas hailed the recognitions as “an important and necessary step toward achieving a just and lasting peace.”

The recognitions are a watershed moment for Palestinians and their ambitions for statehood, with the most powerful Western nations having long argued recognition and should only come as part of a negotiated peace deal with Israel.