France and other countries prepared to recognize a Palestinian state as the UN's centerpiece diplomatic week gets underway Monday, following a rash of Western governments in symbolically endorsing statehood and sparking Israel's wrath.

Recognition by Britain, Canada, Australia and Portugal on Sunday of a Palestinian state piled pressure on Israel as it intensifies its war in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands, devastated the enclave and drawn vocal rebukes from its allies.

President Emmanuel Macron has indicated France will follow suit Monday as he prepares to host a meeting with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman on the moribund two-state solution -- Palestinian and Israeli coexistence.

"They want a nation, they want a state, and we should not push them towards Hamas," Macron told CBS News's "Face the Nation" Sunday, adding that the move would help isolate the armed group.

He also said he would make the release of hostages taken by Hamas during its October 7, 2023, attack on Israel a precondition of opening an embassy to the Palestinian state.

Israel's foreign ministry said the recognition moves do not "promote peace, but on the contrary........

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