Using data from Wikipedia, Visual Capitalist has mapped the nations that do not recognize Palestine and Israel.
The recent confrontation between Israel and Hamas has placed the Gaza Strip and the State of Palestine, which is only partially recognized, front and center in the world press.
Bruno Venditti of Visual Capitalist mapped the nations that now recognize Palestine as a state and those that do not use data from Wikipedia.
55 Countries Do Not Recognize Palestine
The Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) alliance formally proclaimed the State of Palestine on November 15, 1988. East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip were all proclaimed to be under state control.
138 of the 193 UN members (72%) recognised the State of Palestine as of November 2023.
These are the fifty-five nations that refuse to acknowledge Palestine:
| State | Recognizes Palestine? |
|---|---|
| 🇦🇩 Andorra | No |
| 🇦🇲 Armenia | No |
| 🇦🇺 Australia | No, informal relations |
| 🇦🇹 Austria | No, informal relations |
| 🇧🇸 Bahamas | No |
| 🇧🇧 Barbados | No |
| 🇧🇪 Belgium | No, informal relations |
| 🇨🇲 Cameroon | No, informal relations |
| 🇨🇦 Canada | No, informal relations |
| 🇭🇷 Croatia | No, informal relations |
| 🇩🇰 Denmark | No, informal relations |
| 🇪🇷 Eritrea | No, informal relations |
| 🇪🇪 Estonia | No, informal relations |
| 🇫🇲 Federated States of Micronesia | No |
| 🇫🇯 Fiji | No |
| 🇫🇮 Finland | No, informal relations |
| 🇫🇷 France | No, informal relations |
| 🇩🇪 Germany | No, informal relations |
| 🇬🇷 Greece | No, informal relations |
| 🇮🇪 Ireland | No, informal relations |
| 🇮🇱 Israel | No, informal relations |
| 🇮🇹 Italy | No, informal relations |
| 🇯🇲 Jamaica | No |
| 🇯🇵 Japan | No, informal relations |
| 🇰🇮 Kiribati | No |
| 🇱🇻 Latvia | No, informal relations |
| 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein | No |
| 🇱🇹 Lithuania | No, informal relations |
| 🇱🇺 Luxembourg | No, informal relations |
| 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands | No |
| 🇲🇽 Mexico | No, informal relations |
| 🇲🇩 Moldova | No, informal relations |
| 🇲🇨 Monaco | No |
| 🇲🇲 Myanmar | No |
| 🇳🇷 Nauru | No |
| 🇳🇱 Netherlands | No, informal relations |
| 🇳🇿 New Zealand | No, informal relations |
| 🇲🇰 North Macedonia | No |
| 🇳🇴 Norway | No, informal relations |
| 🇵🇼 Palau | No |
| 🇵🇦 Panama | No |
| 🇵🇹 Portugal | No, informal relations |
| 🇼🇸 Samoa | No |
| 🇸🇲 San Marino | No |
| 🇸🇬 Singapore | No |
| 🇸🇮 Slovenia | No, informal relations |
| 🇸🇧 Solomon Islands | No |
| 🇰🇷 South Korea | No, informal relations |
| 🇪🇸 Spain | No, informal relations |
| 🇨🇭 Switzerland | No, informal relations |
| 🇹🇴 Tonga | No |
| 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago | No |
| 🇹🇻 Tuvalu | No |
| 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | No, informal relations |
| 🇺🇸 United States | No, informal relations |
The G7 as a whole, along with many other Western nations, refuse to recognize Palestine. Rather, a lot of them continue their informal diplomatic ties.
On the other hand, the state is formally recognized by growing major economies such as those that are part of the BRICS and other G20 countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Indonesia, and Turkey.
Only the Holy See of Vatican City and the State of Palestine share the status of non-member observer state, which was conferred upon the latter by the UN in 2012.
Hamas and the Gaza Strip
The West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and the Gaza Strip, which were both occupied by Israel after the 1967 Six-Day War, are officially recognized by the UN as being ruled by the PLO.
Following Israel and the PLO’s signature of the Oslo Accords in the mid-1990s, the PLO used the newly established Palestinian Authority administration to seize control of 40% of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
But Hamas, a militant political group distinct from the PLO, has taken control of the Gaza Strip since a 2007 military battle between rival Palestinian factions Fatah, the PLO’s dominant party, and Hamas.
Francesca Albanese, from the office of the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights, claimed that Israel doesn’t have the right to self-defense.
Since its founding in 1948, the acknowledgment of Israel’s sovereignty has continued to be a complex and dynamic matter.
Bruno Venditti of Visual Capitalist mapped the nations that now recognize Israel as a state and those that don’t use data from Wikipedia.
29 Countries Do Not Recognize Israel
All seven G7 nations and 164 other UN members recognized Israel as a state as of November 2023. As a result of the Oslo Accords in 1993, even the State of Palestine acknowledged Israel.
The following 29 nations do not recognize Israel:
| State | Recognized Israel? |
|---|---|
| 🇦🇫 Afghanistan | Never |
| 🇩🇿 Algeria | Never |
| 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | Never |
| 🇧🇴 Bolivia | Suspended/Cut Relations |
| 🇧🇳 Brunei | Never |
| 🇰🇲 Comoros | Never |
| 🇨🇺 Cuba | Withdrew |
| 🇩🇯 Djibouti | Never |
| 🇮🇩 Indonesia | Never |
| 🇮🇷 Iran | Withdrew |
| 🇮🇶 Iraq | Never |
| 🇰🇼 Kuwait | Never |
| 🇱🇧 Lebanon | Never |
| 🇱🇾 Libya | Never |
| 🇲🇾 Malaysia | Never |
| 🇲🇻 Maldives | Suspended/Cut Relations |
| 🇲🇱 Mali | Suspended/Cut Relations |
| 🇲🇷 Mauritania | Suspended/Cut Relations |
| 🇳🇪 Niger | Suspended/Cut Relations |
| 🇰🇵 North Korea | Never |
| 🇴🇲 Oman | Never |
| 🇵🇰 Pakistan | Never |
| 🇶🇦 Qatar | Never |
| 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | Never |
| 🇸🇴 Somalia | Never |
| 🇸🇾 Syria | Never |
| 🇹🇳 Tunisia | Never |
| 🇻🇪 Venezuela | Suspended/Cut Relations |
| 🇾🇪 Yemen | Never |
Most of the nations that do not recognize Israel are Muslim, with the exception of four: Bolivia, Cuba, North Korea, and Venezuela.
Since they have never recognized Israel, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq are still formally at war with it. Iran doesn’t recognize Israel either, but it did have diplomatic links with it before cutting it completely off after the Iranian Revolution in 1979.
Similar to this, Cuba acknowledged Israel in 1949 but changed its mind in 1973, openly aiding Egypt and Syria in their opposition to it during the Yom Kippur War.
Yet, a few nations with a majority of Muslims, including Egypt, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates, have progressively normalized relations with the nation.
Effects of the Israel-Hamas War
When Israel fights in other countries, especially the Gaza Strip, relations with neighboring nations are frequently strained.
In certain instances, those relationships have ended entirely. During the Israel-Gaza crisis of 2008–2009, Venezuela severed all diplomatic connections with Israel. Bolivia severed official ties with Israel in light of the ongoing Israel-Hamas War more recently.
85% of UN members acknowledged Israel as a nation as of November 2023, compared to 72% who did the same for the State of Palestine.