Israel summons Belgium envoy over minister's 'Palestinian villages wiped off map' remark

Israel has summoned the Belgium envoy to Tel Aviv following remarks by a minister about whole Palestinian villages being "wiped off the map".

Belgium's ambassador to Israel, Jean-Luc Bodson, was summoned to the foreign ministry Minister for International Development Caroline Gennez slammed the actions of Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.

"In the occupied Palestinian territories, for example, the situation is becoming unsustainable. Entire villages are being wiped off the map by the Israelis," she said.

"The periods of escalating violence are shorter than before, but more frequent and more intense."

This sparked fury among Israeli officials including the country's envoy to Belgium, Idit Rosenzweig-Abu, who described the comments as "libelous and defamatory".

Gennez was likely referring to Palestinian families fleeing their homes this year following settler attacks.

Homes are also being seized in Jerusalem and other places, while Muslim graves and other places of importance are being destroyed, rights groups say.

Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir watched the demolition of a Palestinian home in the Negev, part of a campaign to destroy whole villages in southern Israel.

Israel also destroys the family homes of Palestinians accused of "terror attacks" in a move dubbed "collective punishment" by rights groups. 

The Israeli government - the most right-wing in its history - includes key figures in the settler movement such as Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.

Israel settlers have carried out a wave of attacks on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, living in constructions considered illegal under international law.

Belgium has been in hot water before due to outreach by the country's prime minister to Palestinian and left-wing Israeli groups.

In 2021, Belgium also announced that goods made in illegal settlements in the occupied territory would be labelled as such.