France, Saudi Arabia push two-state solution; France to recognize Palestinian state at U.N. in September

France and Saudi Arabia used a joint press briefing to present a coordinated international effort seeking a pathway to a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine and to press for an immediate end to violence in Gaza. France’s minister for Europe and foreign affairs said President Emmanuel Macron has decided to recognize the State of Palestine at the upcoming U.N. General Assembly in September. Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, backed the initiative and said regional normalization with Israel is contingent on the establishment of a Palestinian state.

The announcement came at a conference that France said brought together 125 countries, with about 50 represented at the ministerial level in New York. The French minister said the conference was convened urgently because "the clock is not on our side," citing what he called "a horrendous" situation in Gaza and the humanitarian suffering of civilians and hostages. He said the goal is to provide a political horizon that would make a ceasefire and a post-conflict stabilization plan possible.

The briefing emphasized three strands the organizers said emerged from the mobilization: a common vision for Gaza after the war based on international stabilization, Arab and Muslim states' condemnation of the Oct. 7 terror attacks and calls for Hamas disarmament, and willingness…