https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx202zvygmlo

More than a third of MPs have signed a letter to Sir Keir Starmer calling for the UK to recognise a Palestinian state.

Some 220 MPs from nine political parties have backed the call, external - more than half of them Labour - arguing that UK recognition would send a "powerful" message and a vital step toward a two-state solution.

The letter piles pressure on the prime minister after France committed to recognising a Palestinian statehood within months.

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Most countries - about 139 in all - formally recognise a Palestinian state, although many European nations and the United States say they will only do so as part of moves towards a long-term resolution to the conflict.

Spain, Ireland and Norway formally took the step last year, hoping to exert diplomatic pressure to secure a ceasefire in Gaza.