Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Thursday dismissed Saudi Arabia’s putative demand for Palestinian statehood as a precondition for normalization, deriding at a Tsumet Institute conference that Saudi Arabia should “keep riding camels in the Saudi desert” while Israel “innovates.”
The far-right minister’s comments, widely condemned as racist and laced with Orientalist bias, coincided with the Knesset’s preliminary approval on October 21 of a bill to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, a provocative step that threatens to destroy Palestinians’ chances for self-determination.
Smotrich’s comments came as more than 68,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 170,000 injured in Israel’s war in Gaza, with a UN-backed investigation and major human rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch describing the operation as genocidal.
Smotrich later issued a partial apology, saying his words were “not successful” but reiterated that Riyadh must not “deny the heritage, traditions and rights of the Jewish people” in the occupied territories.
His comments sparked sharp criticism across the region. Hamas spokesman Hazem Kasem denounced the statement as racist and symbolizing Israel’s contempt for its neighbors, and Israeli opposition groups also condemned the language.
Saudi Arabia has repeatedly said it will not normalize relations without a credible and time-bound path to Palestinian statehood.