The Slovenian Cabinet endorsed a decision to recognize a Palestinian state on Thursday, paving the way for parliament to approve the move in the coming days, the government in Ljubljana announced.
“Today, the government has decided to recognize Palestine as an independent and sovereign state,” Prime Minister Robert Golob told reporters at a news conference in the country’s capital.
If parliament votes to approve the decision, the central European nation will follow in the footsteps of Ireland, Spain and Norway, which all formalized their recognition of “Palestine” over the past week.
To mark the move, the Slovenian government on Thursday raised the banner of the Palestine Liberation Organization alongside national and European Union flags in front of a government compound in Ljubljana.
Golob also called for an immediate end to the war against Hamas in Gaza and the release of all hostages taken by the terrorist group on Oct. 7.
“This is the message of peace,” the premier said of his decision to recognize a Palestinian state, seven months after Hamas terrorists murdered some 1,200 people, primarily Jewish civilians.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz accused Ljubljana of rewarding Hamas for “murder, rape, mutilation of bodies, beheading of babies” and of emboldening “the Iranian axis of evil while damaging the close friendship between the Slovenian and Israeli people.
“I hope the Slovenian Parliament rejects this recommendation,” Jerusalem’s top diplomat said in a post on X.
Earlier this month, Golob announced he would be taking the first steps to recognize a Palestinian state, claiming this would act as an incentive to restart peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
Recognition of “Palestine” could help expedite discussions at the United Nations on an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of hostages held by Hamas and a two-state solution with Israel, he opined.
After Ireland, Norway and Spain announced similar moves on May 22, Jerusalem recalled its envoys and summoned their ambassadors.
“I’m sending a clear and unequivocal message to Ireland and Norway: Israel will not remain silent in the face of those undermining its sovereignty and endangering its security,” Katz tweeted shortly before the Spanish announcement.
“Today’s decision sends a message to the Palestinians and the world: Terrorism pays. After the Hamas terror organization carried out the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, after committing heinous sexual crimes witnessed by the world, these countries chose to reward Hamas and Iran by recognizing a Palestinian state,” he continued.
“This distorted step by these countries is an injustice to the memory of the victims of 7/10, a blow to efforts to return the 128 hostages, and a boost to Hamas and Iran’s jihadists, which undermines the chance for peace and questions Israel’s right to self-defense,” added the diplomat.