GAZA STRIP: Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank on Wednesday welcomed the decision by Spain, Ireland and Norway to recognise the state of Palestine, but disagreed about its significance.

“This is a wonderful step by a global conscience that had been in deep sleep about a cause that’s more than 77 years old,” Ismail Hassouna, a 46-year-old Palestinian, said in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Communications engineer Rami al-Rifi, 27, from Gaza City, shared his “feeling of joy”, and said he thought the Israeli aggression in Gaza had focused world attention on the Palestinian cause, leading to the move.

Awni Khattab, a displaced Gazan, said he hoped the recognition would lead to territorial sovereignty for Palestinians.

“We hope this decision will be implemented and that a Palestinian state will be established along the (June) 1967 borders,” he said. But Ahmad Ziad, 37, interviewed in Rafah, was unconvinced. “We need to see such talk being put into practice on the ground, otherwise it is useless,” he said.

Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation executive committee, called the recognition moves “historical moments in which the free world triumphs for truth and justice”, in a statement on X.

Emotional day

Nour Odeh, a Ramallah-based political analyst, was also enthusiastic, praising what she called “an emotional day”.

She said “the war pushed these countries to act”, but also noted that “the majority of the world recognises Palestine”. The Palestinian Authority says that 142 of the 193 UN member countries already recognise a Palestinian state. Writer and political analyst Sari Orabi also pointed to the conflict in Gaza.

“It is clear that this recognition is related to the ongoing war on the Gaza Strip and the exposure of Israeli propaganda and the image of the Israeli occupation,” he said.

Odeh sees the move as a tangible path to a country for Palestinians. “This is not a symbolic act. This is a legal commitment that countries are making,” she said.

She added that she was hopeful the collective nature of the endeavour “will push others now in Europe to take similar steps”.

Ines Abdul Razek, a Palestinian political analyst, did not share Odeh’s enthusiasm, however. “It is definitely not the great victory move it claims to be,” she said. “The decision will trigger a diplomatic ballet of performative frictions while not changing anything about our very concrete and accelerated erasure as a people.”

Abdul Razek, director of advocacy organisation the Palestine Institute for Public Democracy, instead called for the advancement of Palestinian rights and “actual measures including sanctions and arms embargo” on Israel.

In the West Bank and Jerusalem, people were optimistic but wanted more tangible acts towards Palestinian sovereignty.

Ayed Bornat, a resident of Ram­allah, the de facto Palestinian capital, said he welcomes the recognition, and urged other nations to follow suit “so we can be the Palestinian state with holy Jerusalem as its capital”.

The Palestinian foreign ministry welcomed the decision. “With this significant step, Spain, Norway and Ireland have once again demonstrated their unwavering commitment to the two-state solution and to delivering the long overdue justice to the Palestinian people,” a statement read.

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2024

Header image: Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, shelter at a tent camp in Al Mawasi area of Rafah, on Wednesday. —Reuters