European and Muslim countries meet to discuss two-state solution to Israel-Gaza war

Palestinian statehood now recognised by 146 of the 193 member states of the UN

Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares. EPA

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Foreign ministers from several Muslim and European countries will meet in Spain on Friday to discuss how to implement a two-state solution to the Israel-Gaza conflict, the Spanish and Norwegian governments said.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares will host the meeting, which will also be attended by EU foreign affairs minister Josep Borrell and members of the Arab-Islamic Contact Group for Gaza.

The two-state solution was set out at the 1991 Madrid Conference and the 1993-1995 Oslo Accords have long been seen by the international community as the best way to settle the decades-long conflict, but the peace process has been moribund for years.

However, the search for a peaceful solution has been given new urgency by the 11-month war in the Gaza Strip between Israel and Hamas and worsening violence in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli strikes on Gaza - in pictures

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  An injured father comforts his daughter. AFP

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  The school playground, in a screengrab from video. AP

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  A woman identifies a family member among the dead. AFP

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  People at a Gaza city hospital carry the body of a family member killed in a strike on a school housing displaced Palestinians. AFP

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  The destroyed school. Reuters

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  A child at Al Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir Al Balah on August 10, in front of a man cradling the body one a family member, killed in an Israeli strike on their home in Nuseirat, Gaza. AFP

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  An injured girl at Al Aqsa Martyrs hospital. AFP

On May 28, Spain, Norway and Ireland formally recognised a Palestinian state ruled by the Palestinian Authority, comprising the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, with East Jerusalem as its capital. It means 146 of the 193 UN member states now recognise Palestinian statehood.

Mr Albares hosted a diplomatic meeting with the Gaza Contact Group on May 29 in which participants discussed the next steps towards actively implementing the two-state solution.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has repeatedly described the co-existence of two sovereign states on the territory of the former Mandatory Palestine as the only viable path to peace in the region.

The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, was captured by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and has been occupied ever since, with expanding Jewish settlements complicating the issue. Israel annexed East Jerusalem in 1980 in a move generally not recognised internationally.

Israel also says guarantees on its security are of paramount importance.

UAE evacuates sick and injured Palestinians from Gaza

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Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told Reuters that Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa would attend the meeting in Madrid.

Issues that need resolving, Mr Barth Eide said, include the "actual establishment of the Palestinian state or a very credible path to it" and the strengthening of Palestinian institutions.

They also included the demobilisation of Hamas, which controlled Gaza since 2007, "so that they're out of business as a military actor".

The normalisation of ties between Israel and some other states, notably Saudi Arabia, was also important for Israel, he said.

The Gaza Contact Group, an initiative of the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, includes countries such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey.

The Madrid meeting comes before the UN General Assembly this month, where many leaders are expected to call for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has long accused the UN of being anti-Israel, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas are both scheduled to address the General Assembly on September 26.