Palestinian Foreign Minister Varsen Aghabekian Shahin has thanked countries that have recognised the State of Palestine or are will do so, and called on others to join them, Al Jazeera reports.

“A number of states are going to declare their recognition,” she said at a news conference in Ramallah.

“It will be a very important message. Above all, it is a message of hope to the Palestinian people, a message of hope for a free, independent, sovereign state.”

She said the recognition of Palestinian statehood would mean that “Israel has no sovereignty on the territories of our state”.

She called on countries that were “hesitant” to recognise Palestinian statehood to join those that were about to, promising that the “voice of the Palestinian people will be loud and clear within the walls of the United Nations” at a meeting of the UN General Assembly in New York this week.