Israeli Minister Denies Existence of Palestinian People
TL;DR
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has sparked controversy by saying there is no Palestinian history or culture and no such thing as a Palestinian people. Smotrich, who previously called for a Palestinian town to be "erased", made the remarks during a conference speech in France. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh condemned the comments, saying they amounted to incitement to violence. The West Bank has seen a surge of confrontations over the past year, with near-daily Israeli military raids and escalating violence by Jewish settlers, amid a spate of attacks by Palestinians.
- Israeli minister says "no such thing" as Palestinian people Reuters.com
- Smotrich says there’s no Palestinian people, declares his family ‘real Palestinians’ The Times of Israel
- Palestinians ‘an invention’ of past century: Israel’s Smotrich Al Jazeera English
- Israel's Smotrich: 'There's no such thing as Palestinians' Middle East Eye
- Palestinian Authority PM pans Smotrich for saying his people doesn’t exist The Times of Israel
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