UK Recognises Palestinian State Despite US and Israel Opposition

London: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed Sunday that the UK is formally recognising a Palestinian state, despite strong opposition from the US and Israel. The announcement follows similar moves by Canada and Australia.

Starmer said the recognition is intended “to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis.” While largely symbolic, the move marks a historic moment, as the UK played a key role in the creation of the Israeli state during its control of Palestine in 1917.

The announcement had been widely anticipated after Starmer indicated in July that the UK would recognise a Palestinian state unless Israel agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza, allowed UN aid access, and took other steps toward a long-term peace solution. Over 140 countries have already recognised Palestine, with more expected to follow suit at the UN General Assembly this week, including France.

The UK’s recognition comes shortly after a US state visit during which President Donald Trump expressed disapproval. “I have a disagreement with the prime minister on that score,” Trump said. Critics, including the US and Israeli governments, have condemned the move, arguing it rewards Hamas and terrorism. They also point out that the gesture may be largely symbolic, given the division of Palestinian territories into the West Bank and Gaza, without a recognised international capital.

Starmer emphasised that Hamas will have no role in the governance of Palestinians and must release the Israeli hostages still held from the October 7, 2023 attacks.

France and the UK have long played central roles in Middle East politics, particularly following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I. The UK governed Palestine and issued the 1917 Balfour Declaration, endorsing a “national home for the Jewish people” while noting that “nothing shall be done… which may prejudice the civil and religious rights” of the Palestinian people. Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy, representing the UK at the UN this week, said the declaration’s protections for Palestinians had largely been ignored, representing “a historical injustice which continues to unfold.”

Husam Zomlot, head of the Palestinian mission in the UK, told the BBC that recognition would correct a colonial -era wrong. “The issue today is ending the denial of our existence that started 108 years ago, in 1917,” he said. “Today, the British people should celebrate a day when history is being corrected, when wrongs are being righted.”

For decades, the UK supported the idea of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel, but insisted that recognition be part of a broader peace plan. Increasingly, the government has expressed concern that a two- state solution is becoming unrealistic, not only due to Gaza’s devastation and displacement during nearly two years of conflict, but also because of Israel’s expansion of settlements in the West Bank. Much of the international community considers Israel’s occupation of the West Bank illegal.

“We are working to reform the Palestinian Authority, and we have to keep two states alive for the children of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem,” Lammy said.