By Sophie Tanno, Tim Lister and Caitlin Danaher, CNN
announced their recognition of Palestinian statehood, in an apparently coordinated move that piles pressure on Israel and puts the three countries at odds with the US.
• France also plans to recognize a Palestinian state at next week’s UN General Assembly as international alarm builds over the ongoing war and starvation crisis in Gaza.
• Elsewhere today on the ground, dozens of people have been reported killed as the Israeli military presses on with operations in the Gaza City area.
Palestinian president welcomes UK recognition of statehood
From CNN’s Abeer Salman
Reaction now from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who has welcomed the UK’s announcement that it is recognizing a Palestinian state.
Abbas said the recognition was “an important and necessary step towards achieving a just and lasting peace” and would pave the way for the implementation of a two-state solution, allowing Palestine to live side by side with Israel in “security, peace, and good neighborliness.”
Abbas said the immediate priority was a ceasefire in Gaza, “the entry of aid, the release of all hostages and prisoners, [and] a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.”
