UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that Britain will recognise a Palestinian state unless Israel takes steps to relieve suffering in Gaza, where starvation is spreading, and reaches a ceasefire in the nearly two-year war with Hamas.

In a cabinet meeting focused on the Gaza conflict, Starmer told ministers that the UK would support Palestinian statehood ahead of the United Nations General Assembly if Israel fails to meet a set of conditions. These include ending the ongoing military operations in Gaza, halting plans for annexation in the West Bank, and committing to a peace process aimed at a two-state solution. About 140 countries formally recognise a Palestinian state, and last week, France pledged to do so at the same UN meeting.