Saudi Arabia has strongly condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s suggestion that the kingdom’s land should be used to establish a Palestinian state.
In a statement on Sunday, the Saudi Foreign Ministry accused Netanyahu of attempting to “divert attention” from Israel’s ongoing “crimes” in Gaza, including what it described as “ethnic cleansing.” The ministry reaffirmed that “the Palestinian people have a right to their land, and they are not outsiders who can be expelled at the whim of the brutal Israeli occupation.”
The controversy began on Thursday when Netanyahu responded to a slip of the tongue by an interviewer on Israel’s Channel 14, who mistakenly said “Saudi state” instead of “Palestinian state.” Netanyahu remarked, “The Saudis can create a Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia; they have a lot of land over there.” The interviewer then suggested that it was an idea worth considering.
These comments provoked strong reactions from Arab nations, including Qatar, Jordan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Iraq, as well as the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi denounced the remarks as “dangerous and irresponsible,” saying they reflected Israel’s disregard for international law, UN treaties, and national sovereignty. The Saudi Foreign Ministry also expressed gratitude to “brotherly countries” for rejecting Netanyahu’s statements.
The debate over the future of Palestinians in Gaza had already been inflamed by an earlier controversial proposal from former U.S. President Donald Trump, who suggested that the U.S. should “take over” and “own” Gaza, resettling Palestinians elsewhere—an idea widely condemned as ethnic cleansing. Trump also claimed that Saudi Arabia would not require the creation of a Palestinian state to normalize ties with Israel, a claim Riyadh has repeatedly denied.
Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of at least 61,700 Palestinians, including approximately 18,000 children, while large parts of the enclave’s infrastructure have been destroyed. An estimated 14,000 people remain missing and are presumed dead.
The conflict began on October 7 when Hamas launched an attack on Israel, killing 1,139 people and taking more than 250 hostages, dozens of whom are still believed to be held in Gaza
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