France’s National Assembly voted by 339 to 159 yesterday to call on the government to recognise Palestine as a state.

The lower house vote is not binding but sparked fury in Israel, whose PM Benjamin Netanyahu warned that it would be a “grave mistake.”

The French vote came hot on the heels of near-unanimous votes in favour of recognising Palestine in the British, Irish and Spanish parliaments.

Sweden’s government went even further, officially recognising Palestine as a state in a controversial move that prompted Israel to recall its ambassador.

The efforts in the parliaments reflect growing frustration across Europe with Israel’s refusal to work towards a meaningful peace.

The text of the French motion invited Paris to recognise the state of Palestine “as an instrument to gain a definitive resolution of the conflict” and passed comfortably with the support of the ruling Socialists.

Palestinians are seeking statehood in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank, with East Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital.

With little progress on reaching a settlement in negotiations with a stubborn right-wing Israeli government, Palestinians are pushing for international recognition to increase pressure on Tel Aviv.

During the debate yesterday, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius warned flatly that Paris would recognise Palestine if diplomatic efforts failed again and urged a resolution to the conflict within two years.

Palestinian UN envoy Riyad Mansour said a draft resolution could be submitted to the UN security council this month laying out deadlines for a final deal and Palestinian statehood.

Mr Fabius told MPs that, “if these efforts fail, if this last attempt at a negotiated settlement does not work, France will have to do its duty and recognise the state of Palestine without delay and we are ready to do that.”

The European Parliament is also expected to hold a vote on recognising Palestine this month.

The Palestinian Authority says that 135 countries have now recognised Palestine as a state.