UK, Australia and Canada recognize a Palestinian state, prompting anger
from Israel
[September 22, 2025]
By PAN PYLAS
LONDON (AP) — The U.K., Australia and Canada formally recognized a
Palestinian state on Sunday, prompting an angry response from Israel,
which ruled out the prospect.
The coordinated initiative from the three Commonwealth nations and
longtime allies reflects growing outrage at Israel’s conduct of the war
in Gaza and the steps taken by the Israeli government to thwart efforts
to create a Palestinian state, including by the continued expansion of
settlements in the West Bank.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has faced pressure to take a
harder line on Israel within his own governing Labour Party over the
deteriorating situation in Gaza, said the U.K.’s move is intended “to
revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis.” He insisted
it wasn’t a reward for Hamas, which was behind the attack on Oct. 7,
2023, in which the militants killed some 1,200 people and abducted 251
others.
“Today, to revive the hope of peace and a two-state solution, I state
clearly as prime minister of this great country that the United Kingdom
formally recognizes the state of Palestine,” Starmer said in a video
message. “We recognized the state of Israel more than 75 years ago as a
homeland for the Jewish people. Today we join over 150 countries who
recognize a Palestinian state also.”
The moves by the three countries prompted Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu to say that the establishment of a Palestinian state
“will not happen” while Hamas urged the international community to
isolate Israel.
Later on Sunday, Portugal said it was recognizing a Palestinian state as
well.
Announcement came as no surprise
The British announcement was widely anticipated after Starmer said in
July that the U.K. would recognize a Palestinian state unless Israel
agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza, allowed the United Nations to bring in
aid and took other steps toward long-term peace.
More countries are expected to join the list recognizing a Palestinian
state at the U.N. General Assembly this week, including France, which,
like the U.K., is one of the five permanent members of the Security
Council.
Palestinian and Israeli reactions
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blasted the three countries
for proffering a “prize” to Hamas.
“It will not happen,” he said. “A Palestinian state will not be
established west of the Jordan River.”
Netanyahu, who is set to give a speech to the General Assembly on Friday
before heading to see U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House,
said he would announce Israel’s response after the trip.
Netanyahu has threatened to take unilateral steps, including the
possibility of annexing parts of the West Bank, in response to world
leaders’ recognition of a Palestinian state. Such a move would clear the
way for Israel to deepen its control over the territory -- and escalate
tensions with the international community.
Hamas hailed the decision, calling it a “rightful outcome of our
people’s struggle, steadfastness, and sacrifices on the path to
liberation and return.” The Islamic militant group, which is sworn to
Israel’s destruction, called on the world to isolate Israel.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose Palestinian Authority
exercises limited autonomy in towns and cities in the West Bank, said
the U.K. announcement is an important step toward achieving a “just and
lasting peace in the region based on the two-state solution,” the
official Palestinian news agency Wafa said.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Secretary of
State Marco Rubio (not shown) hold a joint press conference at the
Prime Minister's Office, during Rubio's visit, in Jerusalem, Monday,
Sept. 15, 2025. (Nathan Howard/Pool Photo via AP, File)
Historical overlay
The U.K. and France have had a historic role in the politics of the
Middle East over the past 100 years, having carved up the region
following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I.
As part of that carve-up, the U.K. became the governing power of
what was then Palestine. It was also the author of the 1917 Balfour
Declaration, which backed the establishment of a “national home for
the Jewish people.”
However, the second part of the declaration has been largely
neglected over the decades. It noted “that nothing shall be done,
nothing which may prejudice the civil and religious rights” of the
Palestinian people.
“It’s significant for France and the U.K. to recognize Palestine
because of the legacy of these two countries’ involvement in the
Middle East,” said Burcu Ozcelik, senior research fellow for Middle
East Security at London-based Royal United Services Institute. “But
without the United States coming on board with the idea of a
Palestine, I think very little will change on the ground.”
Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian head of mission in the U.K., told the
BBC that recognition would right a colonial-era wrong. “The issue
today is ending the denial of our existence that started 108 years
ago, in 1917,” he said. “And I think today, the British people
should celebrate a day when history is being corrected."
Diplomatic shift
The U.K. has for decades supported an independent Palestinian state
alongside Israel, but insisted recognition must come as part of a
peace plan to achieve a two-state solution.
However, the government has become increasingly worried that such a
solution is becoming all but impossible. During the past two years,
Israel's assault on Gaza has displaced most of its population,
killed more than 65,000 people, and caused a catastrophic
humanitarian crisis, including a famine in Gaza City.
Last week, independent experts commissioned by the U.N.’s Human
Rights Council concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza,
a charge that Israel rejected as “distorted and false.”
Also vexing for the U.K. is that Israel’s government has been
aggressively expanding settlements in the West Bank, land that
Palestinians want for their future state. Much of the world regards
Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, which is ostensibly run by the
Palestinian Authority, as illegal.
“This move has symbolic and historic weight, makes clear the U.K.’s
concerns about the survival of a two-state solution, and is intended
to keep that goal relevant and alive,” said Olivia O’Sullivan,
Director of the U.K. in the World Programme at the London-based
think tank, Chatham House.
The creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel is seen
internationally as the only realistic way to resolve the conflict
for the long-term.
___
Associated Press writers Jill Lawless in London and Josef Federman
in Jerusalem contributed to this report.
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