The embassy of Palestine was officially inaugurated in London in a short ceremony on Monday, hailed by its ambassador as a “profound milestone” in British-Palestinian relations.
“We gather today to mark a historic moment – the inauguration of the embassy of the State of Palestine to the United Kingdom, with full diplomatic status and privileges,” said Ambassador Husam Zomlot in a speech outside what was previously known as the Palestinian Mission to the UK in west London.
The official upgrading of the mission to embassy status came after the UK announced it would recognise the State of Palestine in September 2025, along with several other countries, including Australia and Canada, at a time of major international concern about the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Sporting a traditional black and white keffiyeh scarf, Zomlot told the ceremony this is “not merely a change of name”, but a “change of direction” towards Palestinian statehood.
“What a way to begin a new year together, marking a profound milestone in the British-Palestinian relations, and in the Palestinian people’s long journey to freedom and self-determination,” Zomlot said, before unveiling the embassy’s new plaque.
“This is a day of hope, a day of steadfastness, and a day that reminds the world that peace is not only possible, it is inevitable … when rooted in justice, dignity, equality and mutual recognition.”
The UK’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to an AFP query on whether the UK planned to follow suit by opening a British embassy in the Palestinian territories.
Speaking just after Zomlot at a lectern flanked by Palestinian and British national flags, UK diplomatic representative Alistair Harrison said the occasion represented a “moment of hope”.
“This is the beginning of a step change in our bilateral relationship,” he said. “I wish you ambassador, and your team, a very happy stay in what is now your embassy, and congratulations.”
A fragile ceasefire has been in place since October in Gaza, following a devastating war waged by Israel following the events of October 7, 2023.
Israel killed at least two Palestinians including a girl, and wounded four others including other children, in an airstrike on Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday, officials at the city’s main Nasser Hospital said.
The Israeli military said the strike, carried out in an area controlled by Hamas, had targeted a Hamas militant who was planning to attack Israeli troops in southern Gaza.
Israel has carried out repeated air strikes in Gaza since a US-brokered deal took effect in October that halted most fighting. Israel says its strikes are aimed at preventing attacks or destroying militant infrastructure.
Gaza’s health ministry says 422 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire took effect. Gaza militants have killed three Israeli soldiers during the same period.
Under the first phase of the deal, brokered by US President Donald Trump, Israel has retained control of 53% of Gaza. Hamas agreed to release living hostages and hand over remains in exchange for the freeing of Palestinians detained by Israel.
The final hostage remains still to be handed over belong to an Israeli police officer killed on October 7, 2023 – the day Gazan militants invaded Israel, killing 1,200 and taking some 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 71,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to local health authorities. Most of the territory is in ruins, with the population of more than 2 million living mainly in makeshift homes or damaged buildings in areas where Israeli forces withdrew.
Earlier on Monday, a father and son in Gaza were killed in the collapse of their house which had been damaged in an earlier Israeli strike, authorities in Gaza said.
The Israeli military on Monday began striking what it described as Hezbollah and Hamas “targets” in Lebanon after issuing evacuation orders for four villages in the country’s east and south.
Earlier, an Israeli military spokesperson said the military was planning strikes on what he described as Hezbollah and Hamas “military infrastructure” in the villages of Hammara and Ain el-Tineh in eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley and Kfar Hatta and Aanan in the south.
Israel and Lebanon agreed to a US-brokered ceasefire in 2024, ending more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah that had culminated in Israeli strikes that severely weakened the Iran-backed militant group. Since then, the sides have traded accusations over violations.
Lebanon has faced growing pressure from the US and Israel to disarm Hezbollah, and its leaders fear that Israel could dramatically escalate strikes across the battered country to push Lebanon’s leaders to confiscate Hezbollah’s arsenal more quickly.