In a symbolic vote, the British Parliament voted to recognize the Palestinian state in hopes of pressuring the British government of Prime Minister David Cameron into formally recognizing Palestine. Though most of the members of Parliament abstained, the vote was condemned by Israel.

In a 274 to 12 vote, the British Parliament voted to recognize Palestine in a move to pressure the coalition Conservative-Liberal Democrat government to work toward achieving the two-state solution, according to The Associated Press. However, the vote did not involve the whole House.

Many Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs abstained from the vote, including Cameron and members of his cabinet. Yet, some members from both parties agreed on the vote. Nicholas Soames, a Conservative and descendant of Winston Churchill, said that “to recognize Palestine is both morally right and is in our national interest.”

According to Newsweek, Labor MP Grahame Morris presented the motion, arguing that to abstain from the vote “placed Britain not only at odds with the international consensus, but on the wrong side of history.” Morris chairs the “Labor Friends of Palestine” parliamentary group.

Labor MPs who belonged to “Labor Friends of Israel” abstained from voting, and there were heated arguments between some Conservative members, particularly between Matthew Offord and Sir Edward Leigh. Leigh jeered at his counterpart, saying Offord had been reading from “an Israeli government hand-out” because of his views against the vote.

However, a prominent Conservative in the House of Lords, the Baroness Warsi, accused the government of ignoring the House of Commons’ vote, reports the BBC. Lady Warsi took to Twitter to express her opinion on the government’s actions:

Israel responded, condemning the British Parliament’s decision and saying that no decision can be made without Israel.

“Premature international recognition sends a troubling message to the Palestinian leadership that they can evade the tough choices that both sides have to make,” the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement, according to the Guardian.

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