France to Recognize Palestinian State, Macron Announces Amid Gaza Crisis
PARIS, July 25 (Voice of Malaysia): In a historic and controversial move, French President Emmanuel Macron announced Thursday that France will officially recognize Palestine as a sovereign state—making it the most powerful Western nation to do so amid mounting global outrage over the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.
Macron made the announcement via a post on X (formerly Twitter), stating that the formal recognition will be declared during the upcoming UN General Assembly in September.
“The urgent thing today is that the war in Gaza stops and the civilian population is saved,” Macron wrote.
“Given its historic commitment to a just and sustainable peace in the Middle East, I have decided that France will recognize the state of Palestine. Peace is possible.”
The announcement comes as more than 110,000 Palestinians have been displaced and starvation spreads across Gaza, drawing sharp international criticism of Israel’s ongoing military operations. Over 140 countries worldwide, including more than a dozen in Europe, already recognize Palestinian statehood—but France becomes the first G7 nation to make the declaration, signaling a potential shift in global diplomacy.
Israel swiftly condemned the move, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu releasing a strongly worded statement.
“We strongly condemn President Macron’s decision,” Netanyahu said. “Such a move rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy, just as Gaza became. A Palestinian state in these conditions would be a launch pad to annihilate Israel — not to live in peace beside it.”
In contrast, the Palestinian Authority welcomed the decision. A letter announcing France’s recognition was presented Thursday to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Jerusalem.
“We express our thanks and appreciation to President Macron,” said Hussein Al Sheikh, Vice President of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).
“This position reflects France’s commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.”
There was no immediate response from the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.
France has long maintained a delicate balance in Middle East affairs, home to both the largest Jewish and Muslim populations in Western Europe. Macron initially supported Israel following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack but has since grown increasingly vocal in his opposition to Israel’s actions in Gaza, especially over aid restrictions and the killing of civilians seeking food.
This decision follows the collapse of U.S.-led ceasefire talks in Qatar earlier this week and comes just days ahead of a France-Saudi Arabia co-hosted UN conference focused on reviving the two-state solution. Macron has pushed hard for broader recognition of Palestine, alongside security guarantees for Israel.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in a coordinated message, said he will join Macron and German Chancellor Annalena Baerbock in emergency talks on Gaza on Friday.
“The suffering and starvation unfolding in Gaza is unspeakable and indefensible,” Starmer said. “A ceasefire will put us on a path to the recognition of a Palestinian state and a two-state solution which guarantees peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis.”
The recognition comes as the situation on the ground continues to deteriorate. According to the UN, more than 500,000 Palestinians in Gaza are facing famine-like conditions. Meanwhile, Israel continues its military control over the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza—territories Palestinians hope to include in a future independent state.
Israel annexed East Jerusalem after the 1967 war and has built settlements across the West Bank, now home to more than 500,000 Israeli settlers. The last substantive peace negotiations broke down in 2009, during Netanyahu’s return to power.
With Macron’s move, momentum is growing for a fresh diplomatic approach to the decades-old conflict. Whether this recognition will reignite peace talks or deepen geopolitical divides remains to be seen—but one thing is clear: France has taken a bold step that could reshape the international response to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
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