Yerevan, Armenia - Armenia announced Friday it was recognizing the State of Palestine, the latest country to do so amid Israel's brutal military assault on Gaza, saying it was against "violence towards civilian populations."

A series of countries have recognized the State of Palestine in recent weeks, drawing strong rebukes from Israeli officials.

"Confirming its commitment to international law, equality of nations, sovereignty and peaceful coexistence, the Republic of Armenia recognizes the State of Palestine," Yerevan said.

Armenia added that it is "genuinely interested in establishing long-term peace and stability in the Middle-East."

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Yerevan, which has itself been ridden by conflict with neighboring Azerbaijan for decades, slammed Israel's military actions in Gaza.

"Armenia deplores using civilian infrastructure as shields during armed conflicts and violence towards civilian populations," the ministry said.

It also deplored Hamas for "the captivity of civilian persons" and said it "joins the demands of international community on freeing them."

Shortly after the former Soviet republic announced the recognition, Israel's foreign ministry summoned Yerevan's ambassador.

"Following Armenia's recognition of a Palestinian state, the foreign ministry summoned the Armenian ambassador in Israel for a severe reprimand," it said in a statement.

A senior official from the Palestinian Authority, Hussein Al-Sheikh, meanwhile, welcomed the move.

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"This is a victory for right, justice, legitimacy and the struggle of our Palestinian people for liberation and independence," Al-Sheikh said on social media. "Thank you our friend Armenia."

Israel has killed at least 37,431 people in Gaza since October, according to the territory's health ministry.

Israel is a major arms supplier to Azerbaijan, with which Yerevan had been locked in a decades-long territorial dispute over the Nagorno-Karabakh region that Baku recaptured last year from Armenian separatists.