RIYADH: Saudi Arabia condemns remarks made by two Israeli ministers who called for displacing Palestinians from Gaza, the foreign ministry said on Thursday.
The ministry expressed the Kingdom’s “categorical rejection of the extremist remarks by two ministers in the Israeli occupation government, who called for the displacement of the population of Gaza,” said an English translation of the statement on the Saudi Press Agency.
Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir have called this week for Palestinians to be displaced from Gaza. Smotrich said there will be a need to return settlers to the enclave if the Jewish state is to control it for a “long time”.
The statements have been widely condemned, including by the US government, a staunch ally of Israel.
Over 22,000 lives have been lost in Gaza, mostly due to Israeli bombing, since the start of the war in October, when Hamas operatives raided settlements adjacent to the Strip, resulting in the death of 1,200 Israelis.
