Belgium to recognise Palestine at UN assembly, imposes sanctions on Israel

Belgium will join a growing list of countries recognising the state of Palestine at this month’s U.N. General Assembly and will impose sanctions on Israel over the ongoing war in Gaza, Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot announced overnight.

Prévot stated that the recognition of Palestine would only be formalised if Hamas releases all remaining Israeli hostages kidnapped in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack and the militant group “no longer has any role in managing Palestine,” Caliber.Az reports, citing Prévot's social media post. 

In the meantime, Belgium will impose “firm sanctions” on the Israeli government, he said. The measures include a ban on importing products from illegal settlements, a review of public procurement policies with Israeli companies, and restrictions on consular assistance to Belgians living in illegal settlements.

🇧🇪🇵🇸🚨La Palestine sera reconnue par la Belgique lors de la session de l’ONU ! Et des sanctions fermes sont prises à l’égard du gouvernement israélien. Tout antisémitisme ou glorification du terrorisme par les partisans du Hamas sera aussi plus fortement dénoncé.

🔸Au vu du…

— Maxime PREVOT (@prevotmaxime) September 2, 2025

Two “extremist” Israeli ministers, several “violent settlers,” and Hamas leaders will also be designated “persona non grata” in Belgium, Prévot said. While he did not name the ministers, they are likely to be Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, who have been sanctioned by other countries including the U.K. over accusations they incite violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.

“This is not about sanctioning the Israeli people but about ensuring that their government respects international and humanitarian law and taking action to try to change the situation on the ground,” Prévot said.

In July, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that France would recognise a Palestinian state at the U.N. meeting, scheduled for Sept. 9 to 23 in New York. More than a dozen other Western countries have since said they would do the same. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has previously warned that the move “feeds antisemitism, rewards Hamas’s monstrous terrorism & punishes its victims.”

In an early morning post on September 2, Prévot said Belgium would make a “firm commitment to calling for European measures targeting Hamas and supporting new Belgian initiatives to combat antisemitism, further mobilising all our security services and involving representatives of Jewish communities.”

Prévot also voiced support for the EU to suspend its association agreement with Israel. The European Commission has proposed suspending parts of the agreement dealing with research and development after concluding Israel had breached its human rights obligations under the deal, but the proposal has so far been blocked due to opposition from countries including Germany.

Last month, Prévot and his centrist Les Engagés party threatened to block government business if their Flemish nationalist and liberal coalition partners obstructed their plans to take a tougher stance against Israel. The Belgian government has since held multiple crisis meetings seeking to resolve the impasse.

By Vugar Khalilov