Middle East

Yahoo - Israel reacted with fury after three European countries said Wednesday they would recognise a Palestinian state, more than seven months into the devastating Gaza war... Israel strongly opposes the move, arguing that it amounts to "rewarding terrorism" after the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched its unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel which sparked the bloodiest ever Gaza war. Israel said it was recalling its envoys to Ireland and Norway for "urgent consultations" and was expected to do the same with its ambassador to Spain. Foreign Minister Israel Katz charged that "the twisted step of these countries is an injustice to the memory of the 7/10 victims."  Most Western governments including the United States say they are willing to one day recognise Palestinian statehood -- but not before agreement is reached on thorny issues like its final borders and the status of Jerusalem. However, Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez charged that his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu's campaign of "pain and destruction" in the Gaza Strip was now putting the two-state solution in "danger". 

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said "recognition of Palestine is a means of supporting the moderate forces which have been losing ground in this protracted and brutal conflict". "In the midst of a war, with tens of thousands killed and injured, we must keep alive the only alternative that offers a political solution for Israelis and Palestinians alike: Two states, living side by side, in peace and security."According to the Palestinian Authority, which rules parts of the occupied West Bank, 142 of the 193 UN member countries already recognise a Palestinian state.

NBC - President Joe Biden has said his administration is working to "finally get a two-state solution," which he has said is "the only solution." But the U.S. does not formally recognize a Palestinian state.