Armenia's recognition of Palestinian state is step to end Israeli occupation: Abbas

Armenia's decision to recognize the State of Palestine “represents progress in acknowledging the Palestinian people's right to their land and the necessity of ending the Israeli occupation,” Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Tuesday.

Abbas expressed his gratitude to Armenian President Vahagn Khachaturyan for the significant step in a letter he sent to his Armenian counterpart, according to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA.

On June 21, Armenia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced in a statement the "official recognition of the State of Palestine," a move welcomed by the Palestinian and international communities.

With Armenia's recognition, the number of countries that recognize Palestine has reached 149 out of 193 UN member states.

Armenia's recognition “reflects its commitment to achieving justice, belief in human rights, and the depth of the friendly and respectful relations between the Palestinian and Armenian peoples,” Abbas added.

He viewed the recognition as “a step forward in acknowledging the Palestinian people's right to their land within the 1967 borders, the necessity of ending the Israeli occupation, and self-determination.”

Abbas expressed hope that other countries that have not yet recognized an independent State of Palestine would follow Armenia's lead to achieve security, peace and coexistence in the region.

Recently, Spain, Norway, Ireland and Slovenia also officially recognized the State of Palestine.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack last year by the Palestinian group Hamas.

More than 37,600 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and nearly 86,100 others injured, according to local health authorities.

More than eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.