ISTANBUL

New Zealand Foreign Ministry said Saturday it is "deeply concerned" about a vote against the establishment of a Palestinian state by the Knesset in Israel.

"Only a political solution, where two states can live side by side in peace and security, will end the cycle of violence," it wrote on X. "We must not lose sight of this objective."

Former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said the government "needs to do more to back international legal efforts to end the war in Gaza."

"The recent International Court of Justice ruling is a damning indictment of Israel’s illegal occupation. NZ should speak out on this issue as we have in the past," he wrote on the same social media platform.

The Knesset (Israel's parliament) passed a resolution Thursday in a 68 - 9 vote that rejected the establishment of a Palestinian state.

The resolution said a Palestinian state would be an "existential threat" to Israel.

The proposal was put forward by the opposition New Hope-United Right Party and backed by several parties in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition and the National Unity Party led by former War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz.