Lisbon: Portugal will officially recognise a Palestinian state on Sunday, its foreign ministry confirmed on Friday, ahead of a UN General Assembly session where around 10 other countries are also expected to follow suit.
Britain, Canada and France are among the Western nations planning to extend recognition at the assembly, which comes as ‘Israel’s’ offensive in Gaza continues.
Lisbon had earlier announced in July that it intended to move forward with recognition, citing the “extremely worrying evolution of the conflict,” the humanitarian crisis, and ‘Israel’s’ repeated threats to annex Palestinian land.
Also Read | Gaza Journalist Hassan Eslaih Killed in Israeli Airstrike
“The ministry of foreign affairs confirms that Portugal will recognise the State of Palestine… the official declaration of recognition will be made on Sunday, September 21,” the ministry said in a statement.