Palestinian Authority prime minister visits Madrid after recognition of state
Mohammad Mustafa joins leading officials from several Middle Eastern countries for summit in Spanish capital, declares diplomatic move will ‘strengthen resolve’ for a lasting peace
BARCELONA, Spain — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez met with Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa and leading officials from several Middle Eastern countries in Madrid on Wednesday after Spain, Ireland, and Norway recognized a Palestinian state.
Israel slammed the Tuesday diplomatic move by the three Western European nations, which will have little immediate impact but was a victory for the Palestinians and could encourage other Western powers to follow suit.
“On behalf of President [Mahmoud] Abbas and the government of Palestine, the people of Palestine, we warmly welcome Spain’s recognition of the state of Palestine,” Mustafa said afterward. “This recognition strengthens our resolve to continue our struggle for a just and lasting peace.”
Mustafa was joined by Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Organization of Islamic Cooperation chairman Hussain Ibrahim Taha, and the foreign ministers for Turkey and Jordan, members of the group called the Foreign Ministerial Committee of Arabic and Islamic countries for Gaza. They also met with Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares.
More than 140 countries recognize a Palestinian state — more than two-thirds of the United Nations, according to the PA.
With Spain and Ireland, there are now nine members of the 27-nation European Union that officially recognize a Palestinian state. Norway is not an EU member but its foreign policy is usually aligned with the bloc.
Slovenia, an EU member, will decide on the recognition of a Palestinian state on Thursday and forward its decision to parliament for final approval.
“We salute Spain, and we salute Norway, Ireland, and Slovenia for doing the right thing. We urge other European partners to do the same thing,” said Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi.
The decision by Spain, Ireland, and Norway came more than seven months into the war that began on October 7 when Hamas led a massive cross-border attack on Israel that killed some 1,200 people amid rampant atrocities. The 3,000 terrorists who burst into the country from the Gaza Strip also abducted 252 people of all ages who were taken as hostages in the Gaza Strip.
Israel responded with a military campaign to destroy Hamas, topple its regime in Gaza, and free the hostages, of whom 121 remain in captivity, around a quarter of them believed no longer alive.
Last week’s joint announcement by Spain, Ireland, and Norway that they would recognize a Palestinian state triggered an angry response from Israeli authorities, who summoned the countries’ ambassadors in Tel Aviv to the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, where they were shown videos of the October 7 Hamas attack.
The move to recognize a Palestinian state has also caused relations between the EU and Israel to nosedive. Madrid and Dublin are pushing for the EU to take measures against Israel for its continued military offensive in southern Gaza’s city of Rafah, which Israel sees as the last major Hamas stronghold.
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says more than 36,000 people in the Strip have been killed or are presumed dead in the fighting so far, though only some 24,000 fatalities have been identified at hospitals. The toll, which cannot be verified, includes some 15,000 terror operatives Israel says it has killed in battle. Israel also says it killed some 1,000 terrorists inside Israel on October 7.
Two hundred and ninety-one IDF soldiers have been killed during the ground offensive against Hamas and amid operations along the Gaza border. A civilian Defense Ministry contractor has also been killed in the Strip.
