Belgium to recognize Palestinian state at UN

Belgium has said it will officially recognize the State of Palestine at the United Nations General Assembly this month, joining a growing bloc of countries backing statehood.

Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said Brussels will also roll out "firm sanctions" on Israel, including a ban on imports from West Bank settlements and possible legal action.

"Palestine will be recognized by Belgium at the UN session! And firm sanctions will be imposed against the Israeli government," Prevot, who is also the deputy prime minister, wrote on X on Tuesday.

France and Saudi Arabia have spearheaded a diplomatic push urging countries to recognize a Palestinian state at a summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York from Sept 9 to 23.

France, along with the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada, had already made such a pledge, described as a political signal aimed at condemning Israel's settlement expansion and military presence in the territories. Israel has bristled at the pledges, and the United States has criticized them.

Prevot, of The Engaged centrist party, said Belgium was making the pledge "in light of the humanitarian tragedy unfolding in Palestine, particularly in Gaza".

He said the move was in response to "the violence perpetrated by Israel in violation of international law, given its international obligations, including the duty to prevent any risk of genocide".

In his post, he said Belgium had to take strong decisions to increase pressure on the Israeli government and Hamas. He added: "This is not about sanctioning the Israeli people but about ensuring that their government respects international and humanitarian law and taking action to try to change the situation on the ground."

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed Belgium's move and urged other countries to follow suit "to intensify practical efforts to stop the crimes of genocide, displacement, starvation, and annexation, and to open a real political path to resolve the conflict".

In a statement, the ministry said it considered the announcement "to be in line with international law and United Nations resolutions, and protective of the two-state solution and supportive of achieving peace".

Israel has come under mounting international scrutiny, facing allegations from UN experts, human rights groups and some governments of genocide, war crimes and collective punishment, and, in certain statements, ethnic cleansing.

Israel consistently rejects these allegations and says its actions are self-defense against Hamas.

The Israeli government did not immediately issue an official response to Belgium's announcement.

Avigdor Lieberman, the leader of Israel's opposition Yisrael Beiteinu party, said Belgium's decision is a "direct result" of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's "political failure".

"Due to Netanyahu's inability to manage the political arena, a Palestinian state is being established before our eyes," Lieberman said in a post on X.