Facebook icon
Twitter icon
e-mail icon

French MPs vote for recognition of Palestine

French parliamentarians have voted to recognise Palestine as a state, drawing criticism from the Israeli government.

The vote, passed with 339 MPs for and 151 MPs against, is largely symbolic and will not be binding on the French government.

Palestinian leaders expressed "gratitude" and urged France to "translate its parliament's vote into action," reported AFP news.

Israel criticised the vote, saying "unilateral measures" would be "counter-productive" for the peace process.

France's vote comes soon after similar votes in the British and Swedish parliaments. British MPs also chose to recognise Palestine in a symbolic vote, whereas the Swedish government now officially recognises Palestinian statehood.

France to recognise Palestine as independent state if negotiations with Israel fail (28 November 2014)

Sweden formally recognises Palestine (30 October 2014)

UK recognition of Palestine criticised by Israel (15 October 2014)

UK MPs vote overwhelmingly in favour of recognising Palestine (13 October 2014)

We need your support

Sri Lanka is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a journalist. Tamil journalists are particularly at threat, with at least 41 media workers known to have been killed by the Sri Lankan state or its paramilitaries during and after the armed conflict.

Despite the risks, our team on the ground remain committed to providing detailed and accurate reporting of developments in the Tamil homeland, across the island and around the world, as well as providing expert analysis and insight from the Tamil point of view

We need your support in keeping our journalism going. Support our work today.

For more ways to donate visit https://donate.tamilguardian.com.