00:00Portugal's government says it will consult the country's main political parties and president
00:07about potential recognition of a Palestinian state. The announcement from Lisbon comes after
00:12a series of diplomatic switches regarding Palestine's status. French President Emmanuel
00:18Macron said last week that his country plans to recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General
00:23Assembly in September, making it the first major Western country to do so. Around 144 of the UN's
00:31193 member states recognize Palestine as a state, but only a handful of the 27 European Union member
00:38countries do, including Spain, Sweden and Ireland. Macron's announcement was followed by the UK,
00:45Canada and Malta, but under certain conditions. It comes amid rising global outrage over the way
00:52Israel is fighting the war against Hamas in Gaza and its months-long blockade of aid that UN
00:57agencies say has left Gaza's population on the brink of famine. The act of recognition under a
01:04two-state solution involves acknowledging the sovereignty and independence of Palestine
01:08within its pre-1967 Middle East war borders. This includes the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem.
