RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has welcomed a statement by French Emmanuel Macron that his country would recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September. “True to its historic commitment to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East, I have decided that France will recognize the State of Palestine,” Macron wrote on social media on Thursday evening.

More than 140 countries recognize a Palestinian state, including more than a dozen in Europe.

PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron announced Thursday that France will recognize Palestine as a state, in a bold diplomatic move amid snowballing global anger over people…