The Cairo-based Arab Parliament (AP) has welcomed a motion by the Italian parliament to back a non-binding resolution that urges the government to recognise Palestine as a state.
Italy's Chamber of Deputies yesterday voted by 300 to 45 to pass the motion presented by Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's Democratic Party.
AP Speaker Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Jarwan said in a statement yesterday that the move would give a boost to prospects of peace in the Middle East, hailing efforts being made by the Italian Prime Minister to reach a peaceful settlement to the Palestinian cause.
Al Jarwan expressed the hope that the Italian government would leverage the move into a full-fledged recognition.
The majority vote in favour of the motion, he noted, reflected the consensus among Italy's political parties towards the Palestinian cause and the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to establish its independent state.
He added that it also demonstrated the scale of support provided by the free nations of the world and European parliaments to the Palestinian cause.
Source: WAM