LJUBLJANA, June 4. /TASS/. Slovenia’s National Assembly, or parliament, has voted in favor of recognizing Palestine as an independent state, speaker Urska Klakocar Zupancic said.

According to the speaker, fifty-three lawmakers took part in the voting. "Fifty-two voted in favor, no one voted against. <…> Slovenia has recognized Palestine as an independent and sovereign state," she said.

Before the voting, the legislature turned down the Democratic Party’s initiative to hold a consultative referendum on this matter. The party insists that the recognition of Palestine means "supporting the Hamas terrorist organization."

The Slovenian government made a decision to recognize Palestine as an independent state on May 30 and referred the matter to parliament.

On May 22, Spain, Ireland, and Norway announced their decision to recognized Palestine. Following these statements, Israel recalled its ambassadors from these countries and their ambassadors were summoned to the Israeli foreign ministry.

Today, more than 140 out of 193 United Nations member countries, including Russia, recognize Palestine’s statehood.