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Canada plans to recognize a Palestinian state in September during a meeting of the United Nations, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Wednesday.
“We are working ourselves, with others, to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution, to not allow the facts on the ground, deaths on the ground, the settlements on the ground, the expropriations on the ground, to get to such an extent that this is not possible,” Carney said.
Carney said the move was subject to the Palestinian Authority’s commitment to reforms, including commitments to reform its governance and to hold general elections next year in which Hamas “can play no part.”
Israel criticized Carney’s position, calling it a “reward for Hamas” that hurts efforts to reach a ceasefire and free the remaining hostages still held by the terror group after its Oct. 7, 2023, attack against the Jewish State.
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“Israel rejects the statement by the Prime Minister of Canada,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “The change in the position of the Canadian government at this time is a reward for Hamas and harms the efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of the hostages.”
Carney’s announcement came after France said last week it would recognize a Palestinian state and a day after Britain said it would recognize the state at the U.N. if the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza had not stopped by then.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who spoke with Carney before Canada’s announcement, said the recognition of a Palestinian state will “revive a prospect of peace in the region.”
The announcements by some of Israel’s closest allies reflect the growing international outrage over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, adding more pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government.
“Canada condemns the fact that the Israeli government has allowed a catastrophe to unfold in Gaza,” Carney said.
The White House also opposes the decision to recognize a Palestinian state, saying President Donald Trump agrees with Israel that it would be “rewarding Hamas.”
“As the president stated, he would be rewarding Hamas if he recognizes a Palestinian state, and he doesn’t think they should be rewarded,” a White House official said. “So he is not going to do that. President Trump’s focus is on getting people fed [in Gaza].”
U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff is scheduled to travel to Israel on Thursday to discuss the situation in Gaza. Trump said this week he expected centers to be set up to feed more people in the area.
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The Palestinian government has been a non-member observer state of the U.N. General Assembly since 2012, recognized by more than three-quarters of the assembly’s 193 member states.
The war in Gaza began with Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel in which roughly 1,200 people were killed and another 251 were abducted, Israeli officials reported.
Israel responded with an ongoing military offensive in the Gaza Strip, killing more than 60,000 people, according to the Hamas-run government’s Gaza health ministry.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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