Egypt condemns Smotrich's 'no Palestinians' remarks, display of 'Greater Israel' map

Egypt condemned on Tuesday the far-right Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich's statements that denied the existence of Palestinians and also displaying a map of Israel that absorbs Palestinian and Jordanian territories, Egyptian local state-run Ahram online news outlet reported

The spokesperson of the Egyptian foreign ministry Ahmed Abu Zeid described the incident as "a blatant violation of the sovereignty of a sister Arab country and its recognised international borders as well as a violation of the peace treaty signed between Jordan and Israel," the report added.

Abu Zeid affirmed Egypt's "full solidarity” with the Hashemite Kingdom in statements he gave to the Jordanian Petra news agency's office in Cairo.

In a private memorial service for French-Israeli Zionist activist Jacques Kupfer in Paris on Sunday, Smotrich said, "there are no Palestinians because there are no Palestinian people," triggering a widespread regional and international outcry.

Furthermore, Smotrich spoke during the event in Paris at a podium draped with a map of Israel that included the occupied West Bank and parts of Jordan representing what some Israeli far-rights factions believe to be the "Greater Israel."

One day later, Egypt condemned Smotrich's statements, describing them as being "irresponsible and inflammatory."

Jordanian Foreign Ministry slammed the map and warned against the far-right minister's statements and demanded the international community take action. 

Jordan also demanded the Israeli government take a "clear stance" and summoned the Israeli ambassador in Amman to voice its rejection of what it described as a "racist speech".

The Jordanian foreign ministry said that it will take all necessary legal and political measures to stand against those actions.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and UAE also slammed the Israeli minister's statements, while a high-level Emirati delegation is expected to meet Israeli president Isaac Herzog to express official condemnation in person.

Late Egyptian president Anwar Sadat normalised relations with Israel in the 1970s. At the diplomatic level, Egypt currently treats Israel as a friendly country with strong ties in different fields, particularly security and economy.