In Ramallah - the de facto Palestinian capital of the occupied West Bank - many fear Western recognition of Palestinian statehood is too little, too late.
I'm really glad that there are people who can see our suffering in Palestine and understand the problems we're going through, says Diaa, 23, who did not want to give his full name.
But while recognition is important, what we really need are solutions.
This city is home to government buildings, diplomatic missions, and a sprawling presidential palace. However, for many Palestinians, the dream remains that East Jerusalem - just a few miles south but largely cut off by Israel's separation barrier - could become their capital under a two-state solution, which would create an independent Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, alongside Israel.
With that stated goal, the UK, France, Australia, Canada, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, Andorra, and Monaco announced formal recognition of the State of Palestine at the UN General Assembly in New York this week.
Recognition is a positive after all this time, says Kamal Daowd, 40, on a busy Ramallah street. But without international pressure it will not be enough.
He asserts, If recognition comes without giving us our rights, then it's nothing more than ink on paper.
Israel has labelled the Western move a reward for terrorism. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated on Sunday there will be no Palestinian state - while ultranationalists in his governing coalition went further, repeating calls for Israel to annex the West Bank outright.
Israel's Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich wrote, The only response is the removal of the foolish idea of a Palestinian state from the agenda forever.
The UK and Germany have warned Israel against annexation, while UN Secretary General António Guterres emphasized that such actions would be morally, legally and politically intolerable.
Since the 1967 Middle East war, Israel has constructed around 160 settlements housing 700,000 Jews amidst about 3.3 million Palestinians in the West Bank. The settlements are illegal under international law.
In the almost two years since the Hamas-led attack that triggered a war in Gaza, Israel has tightened its control over the West Bank, conducting military operations against armed Palestinian resistance and demolishing homes.
The situation grows more dire as new Israeli military checkpoints spread across the territory, causing ordinary travel to become extremely difficult. Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority faces an ongoing economic blockade, impacting salaries for public employees.
With rising settler violence and the establishment of informal outposts, the Palestinian sense of security diminishes. Settlement projects, including the proposed E1 project near Jerusalem, threaten the feasibility of a contiguous Palestinian state.
Amidst despair, there appears to be a lingering hope. Senior Fatah official Sabri Saidam states, If I did not believe a Palestinian state could come into existence, we would not have pursued recognition.
Yet the American government's recent actions against Palestinian officials seeking to engage at the UN suggest significant challenges ahead.
Ordinary Palestinians like Diaa feel the weight of indecisiveness: People feel that the national dream is almost impossible.
