By Bongiwe Dlamini

MBABANE:Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper says she has warned Israel not to annex parts of the West Bank in retaliation for the UK's recognition of Palestinian statehood, the British Broadcasting Corporation(BBC) reported on Monday.

Cooper was speaking to the BBC before attending a conference on Monday at the UN in New York where France and other European states are due to make a similar announcement.

“In what was a significant change in policy, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced the recognition of a Palestinian state by the UK on Sunday alongside Canada, Australia and Portugal”, reads the BBC report in part.

But Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the moves, saying they give “a huge reward to terrorism”.