France, Britain, Canada, Australia, and Malta all say they are preparing to recognize a state of Palestine at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly in September. They would join another 147 UN countries that already do so.

A 58% majority of Americans believe that every country in the United Nations should recognize Palestine as a nation, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll, as Israel and Hamas considered a possible truce in the nearly two-year-long war.

Germany's foreign minister has called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages held by Hamas after a meeting in Indonesia.

French President Emmanuel Macron shared a letter addressed to the leader of the Palestinian Authority on Thursday, citing a need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

The largely symbolic move has more to do with politics than supporting Palestinians’ right to self-determination.

The poll was conducted after the leaders of France, Canada and the U.K. announced their intention to recognize Palestinian statehood.

Shahed Ghoreishi recommended expressing condolences for slain journalists in Gaza and opposing the forced displacement of Palestinians. He was fired days later.

International recognition will do as much to rebuke Hamas’s maximalist demands as it will those of the Israeli right, dealing a blow to expansionist aspirations in the West Bank, the only territory that has any realistic chance of becoming a Palestinian state.