War in Gaza
Norway, Ireland and Spain will officially recognize the Palestinian state – Israel recalls ambassadors
Irish-Palestinian Solidarity Campaign demonstrators in Dublin
© Brian Lawless / PA Wire / DPA
The question of solidarity in the conflict between Israel and the Gaza Strip is highly controversial. Should one take a position at all? Many countries think: yes – even if Israel doesn’t like it.
Norway will recognize Palestine as a state. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre announced this on Wednesday morning in Oslo. The recognition should therefore take place on May 28th. Ireland and Spain joined in. According to media reports, other European states also wanted to announce the recognition of Palestine on Wednesday.
“Palestinians have a fundamental, independent right to their own state. Both Israelis and Palestinians have the right to live in peace in separate states. There can be no peace in the Middle East without a two-state solution,” said a press release Norwegian government. An Irish government spokesman announced the move was intended to keep the option of a two-state solution alive.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz has recalled his country’s ambassadors to Ireland and Norway for immediate consultations. “I am sending a clear and unambiguous message to Ireland and Norway: Israel will not remain silent in the face of those who undermine its sovereignty and threaten its security,” Katz wrote on Platform X about the two countries’ decision to recognize a Palestinian state.
Sweden has long recognized the Palestinian state
Spain, which now also recognizes a Palestinian state, has long been one of the harshest critics in Europe of Israel’s military actions in the Gaza Strip. The left-wing government suspended all arms exports to Israel in October. The recognition is right because “it is in Europe’s geopolitical interest and because the international community cannot help the Palestinian state if it does not recognize it,” Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said.
In March, he signed a joint declaration with the heads of government of Ireland, Slovenia and Malta in Brussels, in which the four EU countries expressed their willingness to recognise an independent Palestinian state. In April, Sánchez travelled to Norway and Ireland. The three countries assured that they would coordinate closely on the recognition.
Sweden recognized Palestine as a state ten years ago. However, critics complain that the Palestinian territories lack important criteria for such a step. For example, the border between Israel and the Palestinians remains contentious. This also applies to the political status of East Jerusalem.
Israel describes recognition as “reward for terrorism”
Israel strictly rejects recognizing Palestine. “By pushing for a Palestinian state, you are telling murderers and rapists that terror pays,” Israel’s UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan said recently as the UN General Assembly strengthened Palestine’s status. The Palestinian Authority does not meet the criteria for statehood.
Israel sees such a move as a “reward for terrorism,” which makes a negotiated solution to the Gaza war less likely. The Israeli Foreign Ministry warned the Irish government about the decision in a video message on the online service X. Recognizing a “Palestinian state runs the risk of turning you into a pawn in the hands of Iran” and the radical Islamic Palestinian organization Hamas, it said. The move does nothing other than “feed extremism and instability.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas praised Norway’s decision and called on other countries to also recognize Palestine. The Norwegian move will strengthen “the Palestinians’ right to self-determination” and benefit efforts toward a two-state solution, Abbas said in a statement carried by the official Wafa news agency. The radical Islamic group Hamas has also welcomed the impending recognition of a Palestinian state. It is an “important step towards reaffirming our right to land and establishing a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital,” said the Palestinian organization.
A bloody conflict has been raging between Israel and the Gaza Strip since October 7th. The trigger was the major attack on Israel by the Islamist Palestinian organization Hamas, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the EU and the USA. According to Israeli figures, the radical Islamic fighters killed more than 1,170 people. 252 more people were kidnapped as hostages in the Gaza Strip. 124 of them are still there, 37 of whom are dead, according to the army.
In response, Israel has since taken massive military action in the Gaza Strip. According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, which cannot be independently verified, more than 35,600 people were killed.
Note: This post has been updated.