Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India as they meet for bilateral talks at Chequers on July 24, 2025 in Aylesbury, England. (Photo by Kin Cheung – WPA Pool/Getty Images.)
Keir Starmer, the prime minister of the United Kingdom, told reporters on Tuesday that he intends to recognize a Palestinian state in September, before the U.N. General Assembly, “unless the Israeli government takes substantive steps to end the appalling situation in Gaza” and agrees to a ceasefire and to “commit to a long-term sustainable peace, reviving the prospect of a two-state solution.”
“This includes allowing the United Nations to restart the supply of aid and making clear that there will be no annexations in the West Bank,” Starmer said during the briefing at 10 Downing Street.
Starmer’s office stated that London is “taking additional immediate steps to alleviate the humanitarian situation, including air drops of humanitarian supplies along with Jordan, and getting injured children out of Gaza and into British hospitals alongside pressing strongly for U.N. deliveries of humanitarian assistance to resume.”
Jean-Noël Barrot, the French foreign minister, noted that Paris had recently said it would recognize a Palestinian state in September.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu harshly criticized the British move, saying on X that “Starmer rewards Hamas’s monstrous terrorism & punishes its victims.”
“A jihadist state on Israel’s border TODAY will threaten Britain TOMORROW. Appeasement towards jihadist terrorists always fails. It will fail you too. It will not happen,” the post continued.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry stated that the Jewish state “rejects the statement by the prime minister of the United Kingdom.”
“The shift in the British government’s position at this time, following the French move and internal political pressures, constitutes a reward for Hamas and harms efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of hostages,” the ministry stated.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews stated that it is seeking “urgent clarification from the U.K. government that it will not recognize Palestine in September if Israel’s hostages continue to remain in Hamas captivity or if Hamas continues to reject the ceasefire, as it did last week.”
“We must neither forsake the hostages nor reward Hamas terror or intransigence,” a spokesman for the board said. “We will shortly be holding a special meeting of our deputies to discuss the rapidly changing events in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank, including continuing to lend our support to a rapid and sustained increase in humanitarian aid.”
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Tuesday that he “surprisingly” didn’t discuss London recognizing a Palestinian state with the British prime minister.
“We have no view on that,” Trump said. “We’re going to get a lot of money to the area, so they get some food. He’s going to, also. I think the European Union is going to put up money for food, and hopefully it’s going to be properly distributed. And I think it will be.”
“You could make the case that you’re rewarding people—that you’re rewarding Hamas if you do that, and I don’t think they should be rewarded,” Trump said. “I’m not in that camp, to be honest. We’ll let you know where we are.”
“If you do that, you really are rewarding Hamas,” he said. “I’m not about to do that.”
Palestinian leaders welcomed the announcement. According to the official WAFA news agency, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas expressed his gratitude to Starmer during a phone call, describing the U.K.’s move as a historic position that could bolster peace and stability in the region.
Abbas urged other nations to follow Britain’s lead, emphasizing the international community’s role in ending what he called “the occupation” and enabling the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the pre-1967 borders with the eastern section of Jerusalem as its capital.
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa echoed this sentiment in his meeting with U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy in New York, highlighting the significance of Britain’s recognition of Palestinian statehood as vital for preserving the two-state solution.
Mustafa said he especially appreciated the U.K.’s ongoing humanitarian support for Gaza and efforts to open border crossings for aid. Both Palestinian leaders stressed the importance of immediate action to secure a ceasefire, deliver humanitarian aid, halt what they claim are land confiscations and resume political negotiations.
B’nai B’rith International’s president and CEO decried Starmer’s “hypocritical and reckless ultimatum” and “contradictory position,” which “reaffirms that Hamas is a terrorist organization while simultaneously threatening Israel for not making peace with said terrorists, placing zero blame on Hamas for the ongoing war.”
“Britain’s threat to recognize a Palestinian state while Hamas still holds Israeli hostages rewards terrorism rather than promoting genuine peace,” they stated. “As we prepare for our annual meetings on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in September, we urge member states to review the facts and withdraw support for a Palestinian state.”
The American Jewish Committee stated that the U.K. decision is “deeply alarming.”
“It sends a chilling and dangerous message in the aftermath of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre that terrorism, mass murder, rape, torture and kidnapping are viable means of achieving political objectives,” the AJC said.
“While one could argue that it is preferable that the UK has set conditions rather than flatly announcing such a move—as other countries have—the ultimatum is disproportionate and reckless. Its conditions are imposed solely on Israel,” it said. “The UK’s ultimatum encourages Hamas to prolong the war. By conditioning recognition on a ceasefire without requiring the release of hostages, it sends a dangerous message: intransigence pays.”
AIPAC stated that “by threatening to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state, Prime Minister Starmer joins President Macron in rewarding Hamas for its barbaric terrorism against the Jewish state and its refusal to free the 50 hostages it’s held captive for 662 days.”
“Starmer’s demand that Israel agree to a ceasefire is a sick rewriting of history that only benefits Hamas and extends this terrible war,” AIPAC said. “Time and again, Israel has accepted U.S.-brokered deals while Hamas rejects them, including just last week.”
“Starmer, Marcon and other world leaders are undermining the Trump administration’s pursuit of peace when they should be joining with the president to unequivocally condemn Hamas for rejecting these offers,” the pro-Israel group said.
“Israel has taken the unprecedented step during wartime of surging aid to civilians in a war zone from which a barbaric attack was launched on its own citizens,” it added. “But rather than recognizing this fact, Great Britain and France would reward the aggressor. This would not be just nor would it bring peace and reconciliation any closer to reality.”