Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz today called on Spain and Ireland to cancel the recognition of the Palestinian state, pointing to the recent death of six hostages in the Gaza Strip as a warning, reported the Spanish news agency EFE, quoted by BTA.
„The Palestinian state will be controlled by “Hamas”, supported by Iran, and will turn into a radical Islamist dictatorship threatening Israel and moderate states in the region”, Katz wrote on social networks.
He called on the Spanish and Irish prime ministers, Pedro Sánchez and Simon Harris, to reconsider the “dangerous step” of recognizing Palestinian statehood in May.
The Israeli foreign minister made the comments after the country's armed forces announced yesterday that they had found the bodies of six hostages in the war-torn Gaza Strip.
These people were among the more than 250 people kidnapped during the “Hamas“ against Israel on October 7, 2023, which claimed up to 1,200 lives and ignited the current conflict.
The six hostages – two men and four women, aged between 23 and 40, were found by the Israeli army in a tunnel in southern Gaza.
On May 28, Spain, Ireland and Norway formally recognized Palestinian statehood, a decision that drew criticism from Israeli politicians. Since then, Katz has repeatedly criticized the three governments for their position.
In early August, Katz revoked the diplomatic status of eight Norwegian diplomats associated with the Palestinian Authority, which controls certain areas of the West Bank.
„Those who attack us and pursue a one-sided policy against us will pay the price,”, Katz warned in a letter to the Norwegian embassy.
Nine European countries currently recognize the Palestinian state: Bulgaria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, Cyprus, Malta and Sweden, along with almost all Arab nations and countries historically associated with the Non-Aligned Movement.
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