The U.S. draft resolution being prepared for submission to the United Nations Security Council explicitly includes the term “Palestinian state,” stirring discord within Israel’s right‑wing government. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, head of the Religious Zionism party, has voiced sharp criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hesitation.
Smotrich returned Saturday evening to a promise Netanyahu made after 10 countries recognized a Palestinian state about two months ago, and lashed out: “You committed you would respond decisively – and since then two months have passed in which you have chosen silence and diplomatic disgrace.”
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Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Prime Miniser Benjamin Netanyahu confer in the Knesset Plenum
(Photo: Shilo Shalom)
In a post on the X platform, Smotrich wrote: “The deterioration we are seeing now on this issue is dangerous – and it is your responsibility and the result of your silence. Form immediately a suitable and decisive response that will make clear to the entire world – a Palestinian state will never rise on our ancestral lands.”
Meanwhile, National Security Minister Itamar Ben‑Gvir, head of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, declared: “There is no such thing as a Palestinian [people]. This is a fantasy with no historical, archeological or factual basis. A collection of immigrants from Arab countries is not a people. And certainly they don’t deserve a reward for the terror, the murder, and the atrocities they sowed everywhere, especially from Gaza — the place where they gained autonomy. The only real solution for Gaza is voluntary migration, and certainly not a reward state for terror, which will become a platform for continued terror. Otzma Yehudit will not be part of any government that agrees to that. I call on the Prime Minister to clarify that the State of Israel will not allow the establishment of a Palestinian state in any form.”
In September, ahead of the UN General Assembly, Netanyahu said his response would come only after his return from the U.S. and a meeting with President Donald Trump.
“A Palestinian state west of the Jordan will not be established. It will not happen,” he pledged. He attacked the leaders of the countries that had recognized the Palestinian state then: “You are giving an enormous reward to terror,” he said, referring to the October 7 Hamas attacks. “For years I prevented the establishment of this terror‑state in front of gigantic pressures inside and outside. We doubled Jewish settlement in Judea and Samaria — and we will continue in this path.” He added: “The answer to the latest attempt to force upon us a terror‑state in our heartland will be given upon my return from the U.S. Wait.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announces he will recognize a Palestinian state
However, following the wave of recognition at the UN, there has been no visible Israeli decision on how to respond. Last month, as reported by ynet, it was assessed that Israel’s response had fallen off the agenda and may not be forthcoming, after the U.S. vetoed annexation plans and declared so publicly.
In the lead‑up to the UN vote, Israel had threatened diplomatic retaliation — especially against France and President Emmanuel Macron, who stood behind the recognition initiative. Right‑wing ministers pushed for full annexation of Judea and Samaria, or at least the Jordan Valley. The Foreign Ministry recommended closing the French consulate in Jerusalem.
France warned that if Israel took such action, it would respond with diplomatic blows. Among others, French media reported that Paris would reduce its Mossad station in Paris and expel Israeli diplomats. The U.K. likewise warned Israel that any retaliatory step would trigger immediate counter‑measures.