GNITN - Special Edition

Israel At War – Day 229

Isolating Israel

Countries To Recognize A Palestinian State

In moves we knew were coming, Ireland, Norway, and Spain are going to recognize a Palestinian State as we read in a report from i24news.tv:

The governments of Spain, Ireland and Norway are declaring their intentions to recognize a Palestinian state. Norway's prime minister was the first to release a statement on Wednesday morning saying “there cannot be peace in the Middle East if there is no recognition.”

In the coordinated move, the leaders of the three countries announced that the recognition would take effect on May 28.

The Prime Minister of Norway added this:

Norwegian Prime Minister Gahr Støre said, "We must keep alive the only alternative that offers a political solution to Israelis and Palestinians alike: two states, living side by side, in peace and security."

"Recognition of Palestine is a means of supporting the moderate forces that have lost ground in this prolonged and brutal conflict."

Of course the major assumption in these moves is can terrorists leaning people live side by side with those they want annihilated. So far, every time a Palestinian land is given to them, they immediately start attacking Israel. Every. Single. Time. Why these nations think this time will be different is a total guess unless they tell us why. So far, they haven’t. Store hopes other nations will follow suite, though:

Støre called on other countries to follow suit in order to give the move additional momentum, saying the war in Gaza "has made it absolutely clear that achieving peace and stability must be based on the solution of the Palestinian question.

The goal is to reach a Palestinian state that is politically cohesive, and that stems from the Palestinian Authority."

Ireland also will recognize a Palestinian state:

Ireland's prime minister was joined by the foreign minister in announcing their decision, with Foreign Minister Micheál Martin saying it was important that the decision not be misrepresented as a hostile act towards Israel.

Prime Minister Simon Harris said Israel “loses nothing” from the recognition of the state of Palestine, and added that "Hamas is not the Palestinian people," in response to Israel's claim that recognition of a Palestinian state would be a reward for terrorism.

“We know what it’s like” when a terrorist organization tries to hijack your identity, Harris said, referencing Ireland's history with terrorism and its conflict with North Ireland. Decent people are able to differentiate the actions of terrorists and the decent people of a state, Harris added.

Spain intends to recognize a Palestinian state:

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the decision to recognize a Palestinian state can be summarized in three words: peace, justice, and coherence. He stressed that the move would strengthen the Palestinian Authority (PA) against Hamas, which he referred to as a terrorist group.

Sanchez added that recognizing a Palestinian state would level the playing field when the Palestinians and Israelis would be finally ready to negotiate final status issues.

Will Other Nations Do The Same?

The answer to that question is “yes.” In fact there are already countries that recognized a Palestinian state as we turn to an article in The Times Of Israel:

Earlier this month, Slovenia initiated the procedure for the recognition of a Palestinian state as a form of leverage to end the conflict in Gaza. Prime Minister Robert Golob said June 13 is the latest his country would recognize a Palestinian state.

Around 144 out of 193 member-states of the United Nations already recognize a Palestinian state, including most of the global south, Russia, China and India, but only a handful of 27 EU members have so far done so.

As for the European Union (EU) many have already done so individually:

Eight European Union countries recognize a Palestinian state — Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden and Slovakia. Malta recognizes the concept of one and has indicated it may soon recognize a state, along with Slovenia.

Sweden is the only country that recognized a Palestinian state when it was already an EU member, with the rest having done so when part of the Soviet bloc.

Norway is not a member of the EU , but is closely aligned, and is a member of the European Economic Area.

The United States still maintains that the path to a Palestinian state cannot happen unless all parties agree to it:

The United States has long opposed Palestinian efforts to unilaterally secure statehood status, arguing that the goal should be achieved through direct negotiations with Israel.

Washington has also said that the Palestinian Authority needs to undergo significant reforms before it’s recognized as a state. Ramallah has long been marred by allegations of corruption and mismanagement.

Of course Israel is not pleased by these actions:

Israel has argued that unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state now would be viewed as a reward for the October 7 Hamas onslaught in southern Israel, in which some 1,200 people were slaughtered and 252 kidnapped, many of whom remain hostage in Gaza. Israel’s military campaign to rid the Gaza Strip of the Hamas terror group has sparked worldwide sympathy for the Palestinians and galvanized support for recognizing statehood in some capitals.

“Ireland and Norway intend to send a message to the Palestinians and the entire world — terror pays,” Katz said, adding that they are “giving a prize to Hamas and Iran.”

He claimed that recognition would also harm efforts to bring back the 128 hostages still held in Gaza, but said the announcements would not affect Israel’s war effort.

Interestingly, it would be a good thing if the Arab nations would finally recognize Israel as a state, something they haven’t done since 1948. How about Norway, Ireland, and Spain ask for that to happen? Don’t worry, I’m not holding my breath waiting.

Moving To Further Isolate Israel

These moves to recognize a Palestinian state are yet another way to push Israel into a political corner. These countries know that any leadership of Gaza will not include the Palestinian Authority (PA) in any form or fashion, so making it part of the recognition is a slap in Israel’s face and an afront to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s plans for the area once the war is over. With the internal squabbles from Benny Gantz and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and pressure from protestors wanting the hostages released at any cost, Hamas is feeling that their plans to survive are looking pretty good. And make no mistake, Hamas and Iran planned these thing all along. Taking hostages wasn’t a spur of the moment thing. Iran has done these kinds of things before and with great success. Anyone remember the Iranian hostage ordeal back in the 1970s? Or how about the deal that Biden made with Iran to release prisoners held there? Those of us who support Israel and pray for her need to intercede specifically about these tactics and the antichrist spirit that promotes them. While some don’t think this is a spiritual matter, a cursory reading of the book of Daniel will yield an insight to how these things work. The Prince of Persia (modern day Iran) kept the answer to Daniel’s prayers from getting to him for 21 days. If not for some very powerful angelic hosts, the answer would have been held up longer. I believe the war in Israel is getting to a pivotal moment where the terrorists will jump in to bail out Hamas at any moment now. And when they do, it will be an all out regional conflict. Fears of it spreading to a world war will become a very real thing, but I see Israel duking it out all by themselves with God as the major difference and the Jews surviving to expand their territory. Your mileage may vary on this, but one thing we know is that praying for the peace of Jerusalem is needed now more than ever.