News between Israel and Hamas and a summary of the situation in Gaza this May 22

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced that the country’s Council of Ministers would recognise an independent Palestinian state during a plenary session of the lower house of the Spanish parliament in Madrid, Spain, on May 22. (Credit: Violeta Santos Maura/Reuters)

The prime ministers of Ireland, Spain and Norway described their decision to recognise the Palestinian state as an “important step” towards “peace” in the region.

All three stressed the role of the Palestinian state in implementing a two-state solution in the Middle East.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez told the Spanish parliament that Spain “has chosen to recognize the State of Palestine for the sake of peace, coherence and justice.”

Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris, speaking to reporters in Dublin, described the move as an “important step” towards “lasting peace”.

“Recognition is an act of powerful political and symbolic value. It is an expression of our view that Palestine should be able to claim all the rights of a state, including self-determination, self-governance, territorial integrity and security,” he said. Harris.

“This is a decision that is being taken on its own merits. But we cannot ignore the fact that we are doing this at a time when Palestinians in Gaza are enduring the most horrific suffering, hardship and hunger. A humanitarian disaster that is unimaginable to most and unimaginable to everyone else is developing in real time.”

Harris acknowledged that while there will be “reactions” and “interpretations” on the implications of the decision, it is important “not to lose sight” that the children of both Gaza and Israel “deserve peace.”

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Storey told reporters in Oslo that “There can be no peace in the Middle East until Palestinians and Israelis have their own state, and there is a two-state solution.”

Storey said, “There can be no two-state solution without a Palestinian state and in other words, peace in the Middle East requires a Palestinian state.”