Israel furious over Sweden recgnition of Palestine

Sweden's ambassador to Israel has been summoned by the foreign ministry on Monday after Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven announced on Friday his intention to recognize the State of Palestine.

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Saturday that Lofven's announcement was unfortunate.

"If the Swedish prime minister's inauguration speech is concerned with the situation in the Middle East, he would be better off focusing on the urgent problems in the area, like the daily mass killings in Syria, Iraq, and other places in the region," an angry Lieberman said.

 Sweden is essentially a signal from the heart of the European Union's founding membership that recognition of Palestine is increasing.

Some European countries had previously recognized Palestine in their iteration as communist nations – when they were ordered to by the Soviet Union. Those countries include Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and Bulgaria, which recognized Palestine's national aspirations before joining the European Union.

Malta and Cyprus have also recognized Palestine, but they are marginal powers compared to the influential Sweden.