GLOBAL PUSH TO RECOGNISE PALESTINE

A look at nations backing Palestinian statehood and why it matters

- BY STEPHEN N.R.

A diplomatic fault line is widening at the heart of the West.

In a matter of days, four of America’s closest allies — France, Britain, Canada and Australia — have moved to recognise Palestinian statehood, shattering decades of hesitation and threatening to leave Washington as the last major holdout.

If Britain and France follow through, they would become the first permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, apart from China and Russia, to do so — a symbolic blow to US influence on the issue.

Here’s what’s at stake