Saudi Arabia hosts Arab-European meeting to discuss recognition of Palestinian state

Saudi Arabia hosted an Arab-European meeting on Monday to discuss the recognition of a Palestinian state.

The meeting, held in the capital Riyadh, was attended by representatives of 20 countries, the Saudi Al-Ekhbariya news channel reported.

"We renew our commitment to finding a final solution to this conflict, recognizing the State of Palestine and drawing support for a two-state solution," Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan told the meeting.

He warned that a planned Israeli ground attack on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip "will lead to a catastrophe."

Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, for his part, called for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, aid access to the enclave, and for a two-state solution to the conflict.

The meeting followed a six-way Arab meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to discuss a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Blinken arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday on the first leg of a regional tour that will also take him to Israel and Jordan.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

Nearly 34,500 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 77,600 others injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave's population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.