Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer makes an address following an emergency cabinet meeting on Gaza at 10 Downing Street in London on July 29, 2025. TOBY MELVILLE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

The United Kingdom will recognize Palestine as a state in September unless Israel takes "substantive steps" to end the "appalling situation in Gaza," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Tuesday.

Addressing reporters at Downing Street, the prime minister said the U.K. will recognize Palestine as a state at the United Nations General Assembly in September unless Israel takes a number of steps — including the establishment of a ceasefire in Gaza, a commitment to halting the annexation of territory in the West Bank, and a pledge to work toward a peace process involving a two-state solution.

"Meanwhile, our message to the terrorists of Hamas is unchanged and unequivocal. They must immediately release all of the hostages, sign up to a ceasefire, disarm and accept that they will play no part in the government of Gaza," Starmer added.

Speaking at the U.N. headquarters in New York moments after Starmer had finished speaking, British Foreign Minister David Lammy said the U.K. government had taken this decision as the "two-state solution is in peril."

"Let me be clear — the Netanyahu government's rejection of a two-state solution is wrong. It's wrong morally and it's wrong strategically. It harms the interest of the Israeli people, closing off the only path to a just and lasting peace, and that is why we are determined to protect the viability of a two-state solution," Lammy said.

In a statement on X, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized the U.K.'s decision, writing that "Starmer rewards Hamas's monstrous terrorism & punishes its victims."

"A jihadist state on Israel's border TODAY will threaten Britain TOMORROW. Appeasement towards jihadist terrorists always fails. It will fail you too. It will not happen," Netanyahu said.

Israel's Foreign Ministry also condemned the decision by the U.K. and called it a "reward for Hamas" that "harms efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of hostages."

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Tuesday, President Trump said he did not discuss the decision with Starmer during their bilateral meeting in Scotland a day before the announcement.

Seated alongside Starmer on Monday, Mr. Trump addressed the situation in Gaza, saying the U.S. will be providing food to the people of Gaza and working to eliminate barriers to humanitarian aid.

"Some of those kids are, that's real starvation stuff," Mr. Trump said Monday. "I see it. And you can't fake that. So we're going to be even more involved.

He added: "I told Israel maybe they have to do it a different way."

A Downing Street spokeswoman said in a statement that Starmer spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the phone regarding the announcement on Tuesday.

"He [Starmer] said that the situation in Gaza was intolerable and that the need for humanitarian access is now more pressing than ever before. He urged the Prime Minister to take immediate action to lift all restrictions on aid access and get those suffering in Gaza the food they need," the spokeswoman said.

The spokeswoman for Starmer's office said the prime minister had also spoken over the phone with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, as well as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, and King Abdullah II of Jordan about the U.K.'s plan to recognize Palestinian statehood.

Last week, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that France would recognize Palestine as a state and would formalize that decision at the U.N. General Assembly in September.

"Consistent with its historic commitment to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East, I have decided that France will recognize the State of Palestine," Macron said at the time. "The urgent priority today is to end the war in Gaza and to bring relief to the civilian population."

Netanyahu said Israel "strongly" condemned that decision and said that it "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. Let's be clear: the Palestinians do not seek a state alongside Israel; they seek a state instead of Israel," the Israeli leader said in a post on X.

That announcement came as pressure has mounted on Israel to allow more aid into Gaza as images of starving Palestinian children have garnered widespread global attention over the past week. The international pressure led Israel over the weekend to announce measures, including daily humanitarian pauses in fighting in parts of Gaza and airdrops.

France's top diplomat, Jean-Noël Barrot, hailed the U.K. prime minister's announcement Tuesday in a social media post.

"Together, through this pivotal decision and our combined efforts, we break the endless cycle of violence and reopen the prospect of peace in the region," Barrot said.

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists 149 countries that currently recognise the state of Palestine. That number would rise to 151 should France and the U.K. formalize recognition of Palestine as a state in September.

At least 60,000 Palestinians have been killed since the Israel-Hamas conflict began, according to the most recent figures released by the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.

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