Britain will consider recognising a Palestinian state as part of concerted efforts to bring about an “irreversible” peace settlement, the foreign secretary, David Cameron, has said.
Palestinians must have “a political horizon so that they can see that there is going to be irreversible progress to a two-state solution”, Lord Cameron said in a speech on Monday night at a reception in London.
he foreign secretary had pushed Netanyahu over a two-state solution to bring about peace for both Israeli and Palestinian people last week during a meeting in Jerusalem.
Netanyahu has rebuffed efforts from allies, including the US, to win his support for the proposal, saying it would “endanger the state of Israel” as he criticised the “attempt to coerce us”.
But in his speech on Monday, Cameron spelled out how the UK and allies could add to pressure by considering recognising a Palestinian state at the United Nations.
“We should be starting to set out what a Palestinian state would look like – what it would comprise, how it would work,” he said.
“As that happens, we, with allies, will look at the issue of recognising a Palestinian state, including at the United Nations. This could be one of the things that helps to make this process irreversible.”
The foreign secretary's comments come following the ICJ ruling last week in which they ordered provisional measures, following South Africa's case that Israel is violating the Genocide Convention.
The court adopted “provisional measures,” or binding orders, that include requiring Israel to prevent genocidal acts against Palestinians in Gaza, enable the provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance, and prevent and punish incitement to commit genocide.
Judges overwhelmingly voted in favour of adopting the six provisional measures in South Africa's genocide case against Israel.
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