US, Israel condemn France’s Palestine recognition plan – DW – 07/25/2025

An analysis within the US government found no evidence supporting Israeli and US claims that the Palestinian militant group Hamas was systematically stealing US-funded humanitarian supplies.

The US and Israel have backed a new armed private aid operation under the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

The operation has seen around 1,000 Palestinians seeking food supplies shot and killed by Israeli forces near the GHF militarized distribution site.

The analysis was conducted by a bureau within the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and made public via an exclusive report by the Reuters news agency.

It was completed in late June, examining 156 incidents of theft or loss of US-funded supplies reported between October 2023 and May of this year.

Reuters cited a US State Department spokesperson as disputing the findings, saying there is video evidence of Hamas looting aid but stopping short of providing such evidence.

Israel insists it is committed to allowing in aid but that it must control it to prevent theft by Hamas.

The UN World Food Program estimates that a quarter of Gaza’s over 2 million Palestinians face famine-like conditions, while thousands suffer from acute malnutrition. World Health Organization officials and doctors in the enclave report that children and others are dying of starvation.

Israel blames Hamas for the crisis, which has intensified since Israel intensified its blockade on Gaza in March, followed by making the GHF the sole distributor of aid in the enclave in May, replacing UN-led humanitarian aid distributors.

France’s plans to recognize Palestinian statehood were met with widespread approval in the Middle East.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry called it a “historic decision,” calling on other countries to follow in France’s “positive” steps and “adopt serious positions that support peace and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people.”

France and Saudi Arabia cohost a ministerial United Nations meeting on Palestinian statehood next week.

Jordan’s Foreign Ministry also expressed appreciation for the decision, describing it as “a step in the right direction toward the realisation of the two-state solution and the end of the occupation.”

Palestinians also welcomed the move. Senior Palestinian Authority official Hussein al-Sheikh said it “reflects France’s commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people’s rights to self-determination and the establishment of our independent state.”

The militant group Hamas, which Israel, the United States, the European Union and others designated as a terrorist organization, said the move would do “justice to our oppressed Palestinian people and support their legitimate right to self-determination.”

Spain, an EU member which recognized Palestinian statehood last year, also welcomed the move.

“Together, we must protect what Netanyahu is trying to destroy. The two-state solution is the only solution,” said Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, an outspoken critic of Israel’s offensive in Gaza.

The US and Israel are so far the strongest opponents of France’s decision to formally recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September.

French President Emmanuel Macron announced the plans on Thursday.

According to a tally by the French AFP news agency, it would bring the number of countries that now recognize or plan to recognize Palestinian statehood to at least 142. France would be the first G7 power to do so.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called it a “reckless decision.”

“This reckless decision only serves Hamas propaganda and sets back peace. It is a slap in the face to the victims of October 7,” Rubio wrote on X.

Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023, left 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians. Around 250 more were abducted and taken hostage in Gaza.

Israel’s subsequent war has so far killed over 59,000, according to the health authorities in the Hamas-run enclave. The UN considers the figures reliable.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the move “rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy, just as Gaza became.”

“A Palestinian state in these conditions would be a launch pad to annihilate Israel – not to live in peace beside it,” he said.

The world is still reeling from France’s announcement that it plans to recognize Palestinian statehood in September.

This comes amid a new humanitarian emergency in the Gaza Strip. Media organizations are warning that their journalists, who have reported on the war for nearly two years, are now among Gaza’s starving population.

This blog will bring you the latest on the dire situation in Gaza as well as news, videos and analyses on the broader Middle East region.