France will recognise Palestine as a state in September: Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron announced Thursday that France will recognise Palestine as a state, citing the urgent need to end the war in Gaza and alleviate the humanitarian crisis. 

The move, to be formalised at the UN General Assembly in September, marks a major shift by one of Europe's most influential nations amid mounting global outrage over conditions in Gaza, France 24 reports. 

Macron said in a post on social media that he will formalise the decision at the United Nations General Assembly in September. “The urgent thing today is that the war in Gaza stops and the civilian population is saved.″

The French president offered support for Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks and frequently speaks out against antisemitism, but he has grown increasingly frustrated about Israel's war in Gaza, especially in recent months.

"Given its historic commitment to a just and sustainable peace in the Middle East, I have decided that France will recognise the state of Palestine,'' Macron posted. ″Peace is possible.''

He also posted a letter he sent to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas about the decision.

Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas's deputy Hussein al-Sheikh welcomed France's intent to recognise a State of Palestine, thanking President Emmanuel Macron.

"This position reflects France's commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people's rights to self-determination and the establishment of our independent state," Sheikh said.

On the streets, Palestinians told AFP that they hoped other countries would now follow suit.

Hamas hailed France's pledge to recognise a State of Palestine as a "positive step" and urged all countries to do the same despite Israeli opposition.

"We consider this a positive step in the right direction toward doing justice to our oppressed Palestinian people and supporting their legitimate right to self-determination," Hamas said in a statement, after French President Emmanuel Macron's announcement that France would formally state its recognition in September.

"We call on all countries of the world --especially European nations and those that have not yet recognised the State of Palestine -- to follow France's lead," Hamas added.

The Palestinians seek an independent state in the occupied West Bank, annexed East Jerusalem and Gaza, territories Israel occupied in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel’s government and most of its political class have long been opposed to Palestinian statehood and now say that it would reward militants after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack.

Israel annexed East Jerusalem shortly after the 1967 war and considers it part of its capital. In the West Bank, it has built scores of settlements, some resembling sprawling suburbs, that are now home to over 500,000 Jewish settlers with Israeli citizenship. The territory’s 3 million Palestinians live under Israeli military rule, with the Palestinian Authority exercising limited autonomy in population centres.