Ireland and Spain are expected to announce plans to formally recognise a Palestinian state on Wednesday, according to multiple reports, amid warnings from Israel that recognition will “fuel extremism and instability”.
The three Irish government leaders – premier Simon Harris, deputy premier Micheál Martin and minister Eamon Ryan are due to hold a press conference on Wednesday morning. They had earlier signalled the government would make the move to recognise Palestinian statehood by the end of May.
National public broadcaster RTÉ and the Irish Times both reported it was understood the decision to do so would be announced at the news conference.
The Guardian understands that Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, will also reveal a date for formal recognition on Wednesday, after announcing his intention last week to do so.
The move comes amid a grinding seven-month war in Gaza that has sparked global calls for a ceasefire and lasting solution for peace in the region, as well as the pursuit of arrest warrants on war crimes charges by the international criminal court.
About 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed by Hamas on 7 October, with a further 250 taken hostage, and about 35,000 people have been killed in the war in Gaza as a result of the offensive by Israel’s military, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
Last month, Harris said of recognition: “When we move forward, we would like to do so with as many others as possible to lend weight to the decision and to send the strongest message. The people of Israel deserve a secure and peaceful future. So do the people of Palestine. Equal sovereignty, equal respect, in a region where people of all faiths and all traditions live together in peace.”
European Union members Ireland, Spain, Slovenia and Malta had indicated in recent weeks that they planned to make a recognition announcement, arguing a two-state solution was essential for lasting peace in the region.
Norway’s prime minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, has also said Oslo stood ready to make an announcement. “The question is when and in what context,” he said in April.
Israel’s foreign ministry on Tuesday warned Ireland against such a move, saying in a post on social media platform X that it would make them a “pawn in the hands of Hamas” and “lead to more terrorism, instability in the region and jeopardise any prospects for peace”.
Since 1988, 139 out of 193 UN member states have recognised Palestinian statehood.
The Irish government has previously said recognition would complement peace efforts and support a two-state solution.
Sánchez has been one of the most outspoken European leaders when it comes to criticism of Israel’s offensive in Gaza. He has also repeatedly said that the two-state solution remains the only answer to the crisis in the Middle East.
While condemning Hamas’s “shocking acts of terrorism” and acknowledging Israel’s right to defend itself, Sánchez has infuriated the Israeli government by calling the number of dead Palestinians “truly unbearable”, and emphasising that Israel’s response cannot include “the deaths of innocent civilians, including thousands of children”. Spain’s socialist prime minister has also said he has “genuine doubts” about whether Israel is complying with international humanitarian law in its offensive in Gaza.
In an interview with Al Jazeera last month, Sánchez said Israel’s actions in Gaza could even lead the EU to debate “whether we continue with this strategic relation or not”.
With PA and Reuters