PLO Member Says 8 European Countries Ready to Recognize Palestine

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh holds talks with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi via videoconference. WAFA news agency
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh holds talks with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi via videoconference. WAFA news agency
TT
20

PLO Member Says 8 European Countries Ready to Recognize Palestine

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh holds talks with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi via videoconference. WAFA news agency
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh holds talks with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi via videoconference. WAFA news agency

Member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee Azzam al-Ahmad said that eight European states have expressed willingness to recognize a Palestinian state on the lines prevailing before the 1967 war in response to Israel's annexation plan.

The European Union rejects Israel’s plan to annex parts of the West Bank and the Jordan Valley and has threatened to impose sanctions on Israel in case it goes ahead with the annexation, Ahmad added.

Palestinian officials told the Israeli Kan public broadcaster that several European countries, including Ireland, intend to recognize the Palestinian state if Israel goes ahead with its plan.

The officials say France, Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Portugal have yet to respond.

A committee in the House of Representatives of the Belgian Parliament passed a draft-law calling on the government to recognize a Palestinian state. It will be debated by the parliament in the coming 15 days.

Ahmad also said that Palestine "plans to hold a series of meetings in the United Nations to exert pressure on Israel to withdraw its annexation" plan.

He stressed that Riyadh remains a backer of the Palestinian people and leaders, lauding the Saudi government for its constant stance from the Palestinian cause as well as the meeting outcomes of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

Following a meeting, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh has urged German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas to increase pressure on Israel to stop its destructive plan.

The talks, via videoconference, were attended by Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi.

Shtayyeh said: “We have affirmed our position of categorically rejecting annexation as an existential threat to the Palestinian entity and the Palestinian state, a violation of international law and agreements and a threat to regional security."

He added: "We have asked Germany, which will chair the Security Council and the European Union, to convey this message to the world and increase its pressure on Israel on behalf of the European Union to back down from the annexation plan. It is very clear that if there is no serious cost for the annexation to Israel, it will not back down from its plan."

Maas restated his country’s opposition to unilateral Israeli annexation. Safadi warned it was “imperative to stop annexation because ultimately it is a path to institutionalize apartheid of Palestine and that is not a recipe for peace.”



Israeli Strikes Kill 14 in Gaza and Destroy Heavy Equipment Needed to Clear Rubble 

Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike that hit machinery, in Jabaliya refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, April 22, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike that hit machinery, in Jabaliya refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, April 22, 2025. (Reuters)
TT
20

Israeli Strikes Kill 14 in Gaza and Destroy Heavy Equipment Needed to Clear Rubble 

Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike that hit machinery, in Jabaliya refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, April 22, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike that hit machinery, in Jabaliya refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, April 22, 2025. (Reuters)

Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip killed at least 14 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and destroyed bulldozers and other heavy equipment that had been supplied by mediators to clear rubble. A separate strike in Lebanon on Tuesday killed a member of a local group.

Israel's 18-month offensive against Hamas has destroyed vast areas of Gaza, raising fears that much of it may never be rebuilt. The territory already had a shortage of heavy equipment, which is also needed to rescue people from the rubble after Israeli strikes and to clear vital roads.

A municipality in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza said a strike on its parking garage destroyed nine bulldozers provided by Egypt and Qatar, which helped broker the ceasefire that took hold in January. Israel ended the truce last month, renewing its bombardment and ground operations and sealing the territory's 2 million Palestinians off from all imports, including food, fuel and medical supplies.

The strikes also destroyed a water tanker and a mobile generator provided by aid groups, and a truck used to pump sewage, the Jabaliya al-Nazla municipality said.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the strikes. The military says it only targets fighters and blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the group operates in densely populated areas.

Israeli strikes kill 14, mostly children

An Israeli airstrike early Tuesday destroyed a multistory home in the southern city of Khan Younis, killing nine people, including four women and four children, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies. The dead included a 2-year-old girl and her parents.

“They were asleep, sleeping in God’s peace. They had nothing to do with anything,” said Awad Dahliz, the slain girl's grandfather. “What is the fault of this innocent child?”

A separate strike in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp killed three children and their parents, according to the Gaza Health Ministry's emergency service.

Israel's air and ground war has killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 fighters, without providing evidence.

The war began when Hamas-led gunmen attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 people hostage. They are still holding 59 hostages, 24 of whom are believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Hamas has said it will only free the remaining hostages in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal and a lasting ceasefire. Israel has said it will keep fighting until the hostages are returned and Hamas has been either destroyed or disarmed and sent into exile. It has pledged to hold onto so-called security zones in Gaza indefinitely.