The United States does not recognize the State of Palestine. Along with Israel, they are the only permanent members of the UN Security Council to firmly oppose it. Since October 7, 2023, Washington has blocked ceasefire resolutions at the UN, maintained its arms deliveries to Israel under Biden, then presented under Trump a 20-point peace plan signed on October 8, 2025 — endorsed by the Security Council on November 17 but rejected by the Palestinian Authority. Yet the United States is also the country where the solidarity movement with Palestine is the most massive, the youngest and the most repressed since October 2023 — and where the gulf between official policy and public opinion is historically wide.
To understand which countries have, on the contrary, chosen the path of recognition, see our article on which countries support Palestine. And for American companies linked to the conflict, read our report on companies that support Israel.
How did the United States become Israel's main supporter since 1948?
On May 14, 1948, eleven minutes after David Ben Gurion's proclamation of the State of Israel, President Harry Truman recognized the new state — becoming the first head of state to do so. This swift recognition, motivated by domestic electoral considerations (American Jews represented an important electorate in New York) and by Truman's personal pressures against the opposition of his State Department, immediately anchored the United States as Israel's main Western supporter.
In 1947, the United States had already voted in favor of the partition plan for Palestine at the UN General Assembly — against the advice of their own Defense Department and oil lobbies, who feared Arab world reactions. This early support was at first pragmatic: during the Eisenhower years, Washington even forced Israel to withdraw from the Sinai in 1956, under threat of economic sanctions, after the French-Israeli-British Suez operation. The alliance became truly "special" from 1967 onward: after the Six-Day War, President Johnson decided to massively supply arms to Israel. This decision marked the fundamental turning point — the United States became both the guarantor of Israel's security and its main arms supplier.
The 1980s marked the apex of this alliance. Under Reagan, Israel was officially designated as a "non-NATO ally" and US military aid was institutionalized at more than 3 billion dollars per year — a level maintained to this day. In return, Washington exerted pressure — often symbolic — for negotiations with the Palestinians to take place. This tension between absolute support for Israel and verbal calls for a two-state solution has structured all US policy to this day.
What has US policy on Palestine been from Clinton to Biden?
In 1993, the Oslo Accords were initialed on the White House lawn, under the historic handshake between Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin, orchestrated by Bill Clinton. This was the closest moment to an Israeli-Palestinian peace the world has ever known. In 2000, at the Camp David II Summit, Clinton presented the "Clinton Parameters" — a framework for the creation of a Palestinian state — but negotiations failed. Both parties blamed each other for this failure.
George W. Bush, in 2002, was the first US president to explicitly use the term "Palestinian state" — but in the post-September 11 context, military support for Israel was strengthened. Barack Obama attempted to revive negotiations, without success. During his first term (2017–2021), Donald Trump adopted the most pro-Israeli positions in US history: recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital in 2017 (condemned by a UN resolution with 128 votes to 9), closure of the PLO office in Washington, and cutting aid to UNRWA. The Abraham Accords, which he orchestrated in 2020, normalized relations between Israel and several Arab countries (UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan) — without including the Palestinians in the negotiations.
Joe Biden resumed contributions to UNRWA in 2021 and verbally reaffirmed his support for the two-state solution. But after October 7, 2023, his administration continued arms deliveries to Israel despite the scale of the destruction in Gaza — a decision that earned him growing opposition within his own party. According to a study cited by the Arab Center Washington DC, 59% of Democrats expressed more sympathy for Palestinians than for Israelis in 2024. A group of State Department diplomats submitted a formal dissent memorandum in the first weeks of the conflict. Kamala Harris maintained Biden's policy during the 2024 presidential campaign — which cost her votes in key states such as Michigan.
What is Trump's position on Palestine since his return in 2025?
Back in the White House in January 2025, Donald Trump adopted a radically different approach from his predecessors — not so much pro-Israeli as "transactional." In February 2025, he proposed the transfer of Gaza's population to Egypt and Jordan to "clean up" Gaza — a proposal rejected with indignation by the Arab world and the UN. In March 2025, Israel unilaterally broke the January truce, relaunching bombardments and, according to many sources, organizing a total food blockade of Gaza.
On September 29, 2025, Trump presented his 20-point peace plan from the White House, alongside Netanyahu. This plan notably included: a ceasefire, the release of all hostages in exchange for 2,000 Palestinian prisoners (including 250 serving life sentences), Israeli withdrawal to predefined lines, the creation of an International Stabilization Force in Gaza, and a "Board of Peace" chaired by Trump to oversee reconstruction. The plan was signed on October 8, 2025, came into force on October 10, and was endorsed by the UN Security Council (Resolution 2803) on November 17 with 13 votes in favor, 2 abstentions (Russia and China). The Palestinian Authority rejected it, arguing that it did not provide for the creation of a Palestinian state.
A notable element: Trump declared in August 2025 a "red line" against any annexation of Palestinian territory by Israel — a nuance that distinguished his position from that of the most extremist supporters of the Netanyahu government. He also removed UNRWA from humanitarian aid distribution in Gaza, entrusting this mission to Samaritan's Purse, an American evangelical organization whose president has political ties to Trump. In August 2026, Israeli forces illegally seized the UNRWA Training Centre in East Jerusalem — premises enjoying United Nations inviolability.
How does American civil society support Palestine?
The contrast between official US policy and public opinion has never been so striking. Since October 2023, the United States has been the scene of a massive pro-Palestinian movement, particularly visible on university campuses. In April–May 2024, solidarity encampments with Gaza emerged simultaneously at dozens of universities: Columbia, Harvard, Yale, MIT, UCLA, NYU, University of Texas. These encampments, often dispersed by police with arrests, attracted thousands of students and professors.
According to the organization Palestine Legal, the rate of legal aid requests linked to pro-Palestinian defense in 2025 remains 300% higher than in 2022 — before the beginning of the genocide in Gaza. The Trump government attempted to penalize universities that hosted pro-Palestinian movements, threatening to cut federal funding. But federal judges ruled in favor of Harvard and UCLA in their challenges to these cuts. The Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) movement is present on hundreds of campuses.
At the level of public figures, many have taken a stance. Zohran Mamdani, elected mayor of New York in November 2025 on an explicitly pro-Palestine platform, represents the most spectacular political breakthrough of the movement. He had conducted a five-day hunger strike in front of the White House in 2023 to demand a ceasefire. Artists such as Macklemore (whose song Hind's Hall became the movement's anthem), Billie Eilish, Mark Ruffalo and The Weeknd (who donated 2 million dollars to Gaza) have publicly taken a stance. For the complete list, read our Top 25 pro-Palestinian personalities.
The BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement is also very active in the United States. Universities, trade unions, pension funds and local governments have adopted divestment resolutions from companies linked to the Israeli occupation. To understand which companies are concerned, read our article on companies that support Palestine.
What is the Palestinian community in the United States?
The United States is home to one of the largest Palestinian diasporas outside the Arab world. An estimated 200,000 to 350,000 Americans are of Palestinian origin, with significant communities in Detroit/Dearborn (Michigan), Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Houston. The broader Arab-American community, a large part of which is of Palestinian, Lebanese or Yemeni origin, numbers approximately 3.7 million people in the United States.
The city of Dearborn, in Michigan, played a symbolic role during the 2024 elections: with an Arab-American majority, it voted for "uncommitted" candidates in the Democratic primaries as a protest against Biden's policy on Gaza — a powerful political signal that reverberated throughout the country. Zohran Mamdani, himself of Ugandan-Indian origin, embodies for many the entry of this community into direct electoral politics.
Showing solidarity with Palestine from the United States
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Sources
— Arab Center Washington DC, US Policy toward Palestine: Domestic and International Implications, February 2026.
— UN / Security Council, Resolution 2803 (2025), November 2025.
— Al Jazeera, Pro-Palestine legal aid requests stay high in 2025, April 2026.
— Middle East Institute, US Policy in the Middle East Q3 2025, 2026.
— USC Dornsife, A Brief History of US-Israel Relations, 2023.
Your frequently asked questions about US-Palestine relations
Do the United States recognize the State of Palestine?
No. The United States does not recognize the State of Palestine and, along with Israel, is the only permanent member of the UN Security Council to oppose it. Under Trump (since January 2025), Washington explicitly opposes European recognitions and does not provide for the creation of a Palestinian state in its 20-point peace plan.
What is Trump's peace plan for Gaza in 2025?
On September 29, 2025, Trump presented a 20-point peace plan from the White House. This plan provides for a ceasefire, the release of hostages in exchange for 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, an International Stabilization Force in Gaza and a "Board of Peace" chaired by Trump to oversee reconstruction. Signed on October 8, 2025 and endorsed by the UN on November 17, it was rejected by the Palestinian Authority, which denounced the absence of any prospect of Palestinian statehood.
What is the level of support for Palestine in the United States?
According to the Arab Center Washington DC (2026), 59% of Democrats express more sympathy for Palestinians than for Israelis, 77% believe Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and 75% oppose sending additional military aid to Israel. The rate of legal aid requests related to pro-Palestinian defense remains 300% higher than before October 2023.
When did the United States recognize Israel?
On May 14, 1948, eleven minutes after David Ben Gurion's proclamation of the State of Israel, President Harry Truman officially recognized the new state — becoming the first head of state in the world to do so. This recognition was motivated by domestic electoral considerations and by Truman's personal pressures against the opposition of his State Department.
Does Boutique Palestine deliver to the United States?
Yes, Boutique Palestine delivers to the United States with free shipping, in 5 to 8 business days. All our Palestinian products are available for American customers.