ISTANBUL / JERUSALEM

Two Israeli lawmakers chanted slogans demanding recognition of Palestinian statehood and denouncing the Gaza genocide during US President Donald Trump’s speech to the Knesset on Monday.

Footage showed Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif, members of the left-wing Hadash Party, being removed from the Knesset plenum after raising a paper banner reading “recognize Palestine.”

While the US continues to reject the recognition of a Palestinian state, a total of 159 out of 193 UN member states have officially recognized it.

During the UN General Assembly meetings last month, 11 countries -- the UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Luxembourg, Belgium, Andorra, France, Malta, Monaco, and San Marino -- formally recognized the state of Palestine.

Trump’s speech before the Knesset was met with frequent applause, including for his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, his son-in-law Jared Kushner, and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Trump arrived in Israel on Monday after Hamas’ release of 20 living Israeli hostages under a Gaza ceasefire agreement. He is expected to head to Egypt to attend a peace conference on Gaza in the Red Sea city of Sharm el-Sheikh.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed more than 67,800 Palestinians in Gaza, most of them women and children, leaving the enclave largely uninhabitable.