Wilfried Devillers, with AFP
modified to
2:20 p.m., May 22, 2024
Norway will recognize the existence of a Palestinian state from May 28, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre announced on Wednesday despite warnings from the Israeli government. Shortly after this announcement, Spain and Ireland in turn announced the recognition of a Palestinian state by May 28.
“Today, Ireland, Norway and Spain announce that we recognize the State of Palestine,” said Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris, hailing a “historic and important day for Ireland and for Palestine “.
“Next Tuesday, May 28, Spain will adopt in the Council of Ministers the recognition of the Palestinian state,” declared Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez before Spanish deputies. He also accused his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu of endangering the two-state solution with his policy of “pain and destruction” in the Gaza Strip.
142 countries of the 193 UN member states recognize a Palestinian state
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs reacted by announcing on Wednesday the recall “for consultations” of its ambassadors in Ireland and Norway. “The government has decided to recognize the State of Palestine,” Mr. Støre said at a press conference in Oslo, specifying that the decision would be effective from May 28. The Norwegian Prime Minister also launched “a strong call” to other countries to do the same. According to the Palestinian Authority’s count, 142 countries of the 193 UN member states have so far expressed their recognition of a Palestinian state.
On Tuesday, in a video message to Dublin published on the social network Palestinian Islamist Hamas. This measure will “only fuel extremism and instability”, according to Israeli diplomacy.
In April, during a visit by Mr. Sánchez to Norway and Ireland, Madrid, Oslo and Dublin said they were ready to recognize a Palestinian state “in close coordination”, in the words of Mr. Støre. In March in Brussels, the Spanish Prime Minister also published a joint statement with the heads of government of Ireland, Slovenia and Malta in which the four countries expressed their desire to recognize such a state.
For Israel, projects in this direction constitute a “reward for terrorism”
For Israel, the plans constitute a “reward for terrorism” that would make a negotiated solution to the war in the Gaza Strip less likely. Mr. Støre again condemned Hamas and assured that the recognition of a Palestinian state constitutes a sign of “support for moderate forces who are on the decline in a horrible and prolonged conflict”. “Recognition can no longer wait for a peace solution,” he said.
In the early 1990s, Norway secretly hosted the first Israeli-Palestinian peace talks that resulted in the Oslo Accords intended to lead to a two-state solution.
>> TO KNOW –Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas and launched a large-scale offensive against the Gaza Strip in retaliation for the October 7 attack, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to a report by the AFP established from official Israeli data. Of the 252 people taken as hostages during the attack, 124 are still being held in Gaza, including 37 dead according to the army.
Since October 7, 35,647 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed in the Gaza Strip by Israeli bombings and military operations, according to the Health Ministry of Hamas, which rules Gaza.