Several Arab countries expressed their indignation on Wednesday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the day before, feeling “a very strong bond” with the vision of a “great Israel”.
Questioned by the chain i24NEWS In Hebrew, Netanyahu answered the question of journalist Sharon Gal, to know if he felt close to this idea. Popularized after the war of the six days of 1967 the idea of “great Israel”, in certain versions, included not only the territories conquered then (East Jerusalem, Judea-Samaria, Gaza, Golan Plateau, Sinai Peninsula) but also parts of neighboring countries such as Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Iraq or Arabia.
Sharon Gal, who was a brief right -wing deputy at the Knesset, asked the question after having given Netanyahu what he declared to be an amulet representing “a map of the promised land”, which is not seen on the screen, representing “great Israel”.
These remarks aroused a salvo of convictions. Jordan denounced a “dangerous and provocative escalation” and rejected “absolutely” these “illusions” which, according to it, “the cycles of violence and conflict”. Egypt also castigated these declarations, claiming that it has asked for clarification from Israel in view of their “destabilizing implications” and their contradiction with regional peace efforts.
Qatar denounced remarks under the “arrogance of the occupation” and reaffirmed its support for “a fair, global and lasting peace”. Saudi Arabia has rejected any “expansionist idea or project” and warned against Israeli “blatant violations” threatening world stability.
The Arab League has also condemned what it describes as “blatant violation of the sovereignty of the Arab states” and “expansionist and aggressive intentions”.
The Palestinian authority spoke of a “provocation” and a “dangerous escalation”, reaffirming its attachment to the creation of an independent Palestinian State on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem for capital.
If the vision of a “great Israel” remains a minority in Israeli opinion, it gains visibility with the presence in the government of extreme right figures. In March 2023, the Minister of Finance Betsalel Smotrich had already provoked the anger of Jordan by appearing in Paris before a map integrating Jordanian territories, leading Israel to reaffirm his commitment to the 1994 peace treaty with Amman.
