Saudi Arabia dismisses Netanyahu's statements on the displacement of Palestinians

Saudi Arabia has firmly rejected remarks by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the displacement of Palestinians from their land, the foreign ministry stated on Sunday.  

Israeli officials have proposed the idea of establishing a Palestinian state on Saudi territory.  

Netanyahu appeared to be joking when, during an interview on pro-Netanyahu Channel 14, the interviewer mistakenly said "Saudi state" instead of "Palestinian state" before correcting himself.  

While the Saudi statement mentioned Netanyahu by name, it did not directly address the comments about placing a Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia.  

Egypt and Jordan also condemned the Israeli suggestions, with Cairo calling the proposal a "direct infringement of Saudi sovereignty," according to Reuters.  

Saudi Arabia expressed appreciation for the support from "brotherly" nations in rejecting Netanyahu’s remarks.  

"This extremist occupying mindset fails to grasp the deep historical, legal, and emotional ties that the Palestinian people have with their land," the statement added.  

The debate over the future of Palestinians in Gaza was further complicated by former U.S. President Donald Trump's unexpected proposal on Tuesday, suggesting that the U.S. could "take over the Gaza Strip" from Israel and turn it into the "Riviera of the Middle East" after relocating Palestinians elsewhere.  

Trump’s remarks, made during a fragile ceasefire in the Gaza war between Israel and Hamas, were widely condemned by Arab states.  

Trump also claimed that Saudi Arabia was not insisting on the establishment of a Palestinian state as a condition for normalizing relations with Israel. However, Riyadh dismissed his statements, reaffirming that it would not establish ties with Israel without the creation of a Palestinian state.  

According to Gaza authorities, the war has resulted in over 47,000 Palestinian deaths in the densely populated enclave. Israel launched its military offensive following the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, which, according to Israeli figures, left around 1,200 people dead and more than 250 taken hostage.