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France Hints at Changing Stance Over Two-State Solution In Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

People hold a Palestinian flag during a protest against the normalization (Reuters)
People hold a Palestinian flag during a protest against the normalization (Reuters)
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France Hints at Changing Stance Over Two-State Solution In Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

People hold a Palestinian flag during a protest against the normalization (Reuters)
People hold a Palestinian flag during a protest against the normalization (Reuters)

The Palestinian leadership will discuss with French officials the recent reports claiming Paris has changed its position on the two-state solution, according to a top Palestinian source.

The source explained that if France has another solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, then it must present it and show prove how it could be implemented.

He stressed that Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and the leadership still insist on a two-state solution, with Palestine as an independent state with the 1967 borders and Jerusalem as its capital.

The source stressed that it is not possible to establish a single state because it requires granting Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza, and Jerusalem equal rights with Israelis, which Tel Aviv won’t accept or allow.

This also means that Palestinians will have the same rights as Israeli citizenship holders, including candidacy and voting in any elections.

Recent reports claimed that the French ambassador to Israel, Eric Danon, said that Paris is working to change its position on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Speaking during a session with a research center promoting strategic relations between Europe and Israel, Danon said that France will not negotiate on behalf of the Palestinians.

He indicated that it is a bilateral issue and France wants to take into account the new situation and return to the negotiations.

The envoy indicated that France prefers a two-state solution, but that doesn’t mean they can’t accept something else, adding that his country will accept any solution agreed upon by the Palestinians and the Israelis.

The French ambassador added that six months ago, no one could have imagined Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain would sign a peace agreement.

He said the Middle East has completely changed because of the United States, Iran, and Turkey, adding that Israel has become a new regional power.

The Palestinians must take into account their weak position on the international and Arab arenas, stressed Danon.

Diplomatic sources in Paris revealed that France does not rule out the possibility of a different solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, according to the Maariv newspaper.

The diplomats explained that the French diplomacy is having difficulty backing the two-state solution because it has become unrealistic.

They told Maariv that the ambassador was clear in saying that if Israelis and Palestinians reached a solution, France will not reject it, stressing the importance of resuming negotiations as soon as possible. They warned that Palestinians could lose everything now.

The idea of the one-state has been discussed before among Palestinian and US officials, considering the establishment of two states is far-fetched and impossible. However, the Authority has always rejected this idea.

The Palestinian leadership continues to adhere to internationally sponsored negotiations leading to an independent Palestinian state, despite the dramatic international and regional developments regarding the peace process and the ties with Israel.

However, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said that the US-Israeli pressure on the Palestinians will cease after the US elections.

Shtayyeh criticized “the joint US-Israeli pressure in favor of the re-election of US President Donald Trump,"

He called upon “some Arab brethren to learn from history,” indicating that Tel Aviv does not respect the promises made, urging them not to be deceived by Israel.

He pointed out that Palestine is “still living in harsh circumstances, including the financial siege and pressures.” However, he also expressed his confidence that the Palestinians will survive the siege and achieve national unity.

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Arab World

Sources to Asharq Al-Awsat: Hamas Submits Response to Mladenov Amendments, Expects Rejection

Mourners attend the funeral of three Palestinians who were killed in an Israeli strike in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday. (Reuters)
Mourners attend the funeral of three Palestinians who were killed in an Israeli strike in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday. (Reuters)
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Sources to Asharq Al-Awsat: Hamas Submits Response to Mladenov Amendments, Expects Rejection

Mourners attend the funeral of three Palestinians who were killed in an Israeli strike in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday. (Reuters)
Mourners attend the funeral of three Palestinians who were killed in an Israeli strike in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday. (Reuters)

Asharq Al-Awsat has learned that the Hamas delegation that arrived in Cairo on Tuesday handed mediators its response to amendments submitted to the movement on June 17 by Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace’s high representative for Gaza.

Two senior Hamas sources and two sources from Palestinian factions involved in the talks told Asharq Al-Awsat about some details of the response.

One source described the changes as mainly “minor amendments” to the reply Hamas and the factions had submitted to mediators and Mladenov on June 15.

Mladenov later amended that reply and returned it to the movement and the factions for further review. The sources, however, did not sound optimistic that Mladenov would respond positively or accept the latest changes.

Among the initial details obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat from the four sources, who spoke separately, was that Hamas renewed its demand for “all dues to be paid to employees who had worked in its government.”

The demand rejects Mladenov’s earlier amendment, which limited the commitment to those who would work under the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza from the moment it begins its duties, rather than to any previous period.

‘Infrastructure’

The sources provided consistent accounts of the response to Clause 8, which addresses the inventory and storage of weapons.

They said Hamas removed the term “infrastructure,” which Mladenov had added in his amendments and defined at the time as including “tunnels, weapons depots, and weapons manufacturing workshops.”

The sources said the factions want the weapons clause implemented in a “gradual and sequential” manner, according to a timetable to be carried out within 14 days of agreement on the paper.

Hamas also stressed in its response that the issue should be tied to “a clear political track on Palestinians’ self-determination and guarantees of their sovereign rights.”

A Hamas source and a Palestinian factional source said the amendments to those two clauses, along with other provisions, were made “slightly,” following Hamas contacts with factions over the past few days aimed at producing a unified response.

But the factional source said Hamas “did not actually consult the factions directly,” although a meeting in Egypt had been placed on the agenda before the response was submitted. They added that “a meeting between Hamas and the factions will be held within two days.”

Notably, Hamas sent a leadership delegation to Cairo headed by Zaher Jabarin, a member of the movement’s political bureau, a member of the negotiating delegation and head of its West Bank bureau.

Such a move was unusual, and faction activists saw it as a sign of Hamas frustration with Mladenov’s repeated amendments.

A senior Hamas source told Asharq Al-Awsat: “Either we reach new approaches, the mediators find other solutions, or we return to disputes as before.”

Another factional source struck a similar tone, saying they expected “Mladenov, as well as Israel, to reject these amendments from the factions.”

That, they said, could return the situation to where it was, despite Israel’s threat to expand its operations in Gaza and what the Board of Peace has promoted as steps it could take separately from any agreement with Hamas.

Arab World

Israel Defense Minister Says Troops to Stay ‘Indefinitely’ in Lebanon, Syria, Gaza

Israeli soldiers drive in southern Lebanon as seen from northern Israel, Wednesday, July 1, 2026. (AP)
Israeli soldiers drive in southern Lebanon as seen from northern Israel, Wednesday, July 1, 2026. (AP)
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Israel Defense Minister Says Troops to Stay ‘Indefinitely’ in Lebanon, Syria, Gaza

Israeli soldiers drive in southern Lebanon as seen from northern Israel, Wednesday, July 1, 2026. (AP)
Israeli soldiers drive in southern Lebanon as seen from northern Israel, Wednesday, July 1, 2026. (AP)

Israel's defense minister said Wednesday that Israeli forces would remain in self-proclaimed "security zones" established in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza, without any timeline for withdrawal.

"The Israeli army will remain in the security zones in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza indefinitely in order to protect our residents and communities from jihadist elements," Israel Katz said.

"We will not withdraw from the security zones," Katz said at function held in honor of Israeli soldiers killed during the 2006 war in Lebanon.

Katz also reiterated an earlier warning to Iran, saying Tehran would be struck with "full force" if it attacked Israel over its operations in Lebanon.

Israel and Lebanon signed a US-sponsored framework agreement under US sponsorship on Friday to pave the way for peace between the two countries and disarm Iran-backed group Hezbollah.

Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have repeatedly ruled out withdrawing troops from southern Lebanon, where Israeli forces continue to clash with Hezbollah fighters.

They maintain that any troop withdrawal would happen only after Hezbollah has been disarmed across Lebanon.

Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East war in early March with rocket fire aimed at Israel to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader in US-Israeli strikes.

Israel responded with massive airstrikes and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon.

According to Lebanon's health ministry, nearly 4,300 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since the war erupted.

The Israeli military says it has lost 38 soldiers and one civilian contractor in Lebanon since fighting began in early March.

Israel has also carried out repeated incursions and bombings in Syria since the overthrow of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, saying it seeks to establish a demilitarized zone in the country's south.

In Gaza, Israeli forces occupy nearly 70 percent of the territory.

Both the Palestinian movement Hamas and the Israeli military accuse each other of violating the ceasefire, which has been in effect since October last year.

Arab World

Syria’s Sharaa Appoints Lawmakers, Paving Way for New Parliament to Convene

24 June 2026, Syria, Damascus: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa receives Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp and Deputy Prime Minister David van Weel at the People's Palace in Damascus. (Syrian Presidency)
24 June 2026, Syria, Damascus: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa receives Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp and Deputy Prime Minister David van Weel at the People's Palace in Damascus. (Syrian Presidency)
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Syria’s Sharaa Appoints Lawmakers, Paving Way for New Parliament to Convene

24 June 2026, Syria, Damascus: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa receives Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp and Deputy Prime Minister David van Weel at the People's Palace in Damascus. (Syrian Presidency)
24 June 2026, Syria, Damascus: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa receives Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp and Deputy Prime Minister David van Weel at the People's Palace in Damascus. (Syrian Presidency)

Syrian authorities announced the names of 70 lawmakers on Wednesday appointed to a transitional parliament by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, paving the way to convene the body next week more than eight months after the process of forming it began.

The 210-member chamber, two-thirds of which was chosen by regional electoral colleges last year, will wield limited power under a presidential ruling system established under Sharaa since he ousted Bashar al-Assad in 2024.

The People's Assembly will hold its first session on Monday, Mohamed Taha al-Ahmed, head of the Higher Judicial Committee for Parliamentary Elections, said during a news conference.

The formation of the new ‌parliament has been ‌seen as a test of Sharaa's promises of political inclusivity in ‌post-Assad Syria.

His ⁠appointees included 15 ⁠women, boosting to 21 the number of female lawmakers after last year's selection process resulted in only six being chosen.

Sharaa has previously said he ⁠would use his nominations to address imbalances in political representation that ‌emerged from last year's selection process, notably in the ‌representation of women.

Ahmed said the selection of lawmakers for the predominantly Druze province of Sweida had been postponed ‌until "conditions become suitable".

The area has remained outside state control since clashes with Druze there last July.

The overthrow of Assad ended more than five decades of iron-fisted rule by his family, during which parliament was seen as little more than a rubber stamp.

UN Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Claudio Cordone had told ‌the Security Council last week that the delay in forming the parliament was "generating anxiety".

The two-thirds of lawmakers chosen last year were ⁠selected by electoral bodies ⁠formed under a committee appointed by Sharaa.

Officials have said this system was necessary because years of war had left millions of Syrians displaced and made it impossible to rely on accurate population records or voter rolls for nationwide elections.

Critics of the process, including some Syrian political figures and civil society groups, say the electoral framework concentrates influence over the legislature in the presidency.

A temporary constitution introduced in March 2025 granted parliament limited powers. There is no requirement for the government to win a parliamentary vote of confidence.

The Assembly can propose and approve laws. Its term is 30 months, renewable. It assumes legislative authority until a permanent constitution is adopted and elections are organized.