UK recognises Palestinian state amid international backlash
Cooper urges restraint as critics call move performative; allies including the United States condemn the step as a reward for terrorism
LONDON — The United Kingdom recognised a Palestinian state on Thursday in a largely symbolic move aimed at supporting a two‑state framework, a step coordinated with Canada, Australia and Portugal, with France expected to follow later. The decision drew swift backlash from Israel and the United States, who called it a performative gesture and accused it of rewarding Hamas for terrorism.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the decision was taken to keep alive hopes for a two‑state solution and to build international consensus ahead of broader discussions at the United Nations General Assembly in New York. She noted that she was attending UN meetings in New York and that the move was designed to shape the international framework for peace. The Foreign Office said the move would feed into efforts to advance a plan that envisions transitional governance and security measures intended to ensure Hamas has no role in Gaza’s future governance.
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Netanyahu condemned the move as absurd and a reward for terrorism, saying Israel would accelerate settlement activity in the West Bank. Speaking in a rapid response, he asserted that Israel had, for years, resisted forming a Palestinian state despite domestic and international pressure and insisted Israel would continue on its current path of settlement expansion.
In Washington, President Donald Trump framed recognition of Palestine as a boon to Hamas, describing it as a reward for terrorism. A State Department official said the United States would focus on serious diplomacy rather than performative gestures, emphasizing the release of hostages and Israel’s security as priorities for regional peace and stability, a stance the official called central to any durable solution.
Families of hostages held in Gaza characterized the move as a betrayal of humanity, arguing that it would reward Hamas while 48 hostages remained in captivity. A senior Hamas official, Mahmoud Mardawi, reportedly hailed the development as a victory for the justice of the Palestinian cause, illustrating the starkly different readings of the same decision across the region.
Sir Keir Starmer sought to counter that criticism by describing Hamas as a brutal terror organisation and by confirming plans to ratchet up sanctions on the group. Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy will represent the United Kingdom at the UN General Assembly, alongside Cooper and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, underscoring the government’s intention to press for an international framework in which Hamas has no role in Gaza’s governance.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey criticized Starmer’s absence at the summit, arguing the prime minister should have attended Britain’s historic step toward Palestinian statehood rather than staying away for political reasons. The government has stressed that the recognition is intended to support a longer-term peace process, even as critics warn it risks deepening humanitarian challenges in Gaza and complicating hostage negotiations.
France is expected to follow suit in the coming days, with other European partners evaluating similar steps as part of a broader shift in international posture toward the Palestinian question. The United Kingdom said the move is not designed to alleviate Gaza’s immediate humanitarian crisis or secure hostages, but to strengthen the international consensus and pave a pathway toward a negotiated settlement that could eventually establish a Palestinian state alongside Israel.