Live Update
From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, February 5, 2025
Report: Smotrich says Gazans should be sent to countries not bordering Israel

Finance Minister and Religious Zionist party chair Bezalel Smotrich leads a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, February 3, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is reportedly opposed to relocating Gazans to Jordan or Egypt, as proposed by US President Donald Trump, arguing that Palestinians should be sent to countries that don’t share a border with Israel.
Smotrich in conversations with confidants in recent days has taken particular issue with the idea of sending Palestinians to Jordan, arguing that this could destabilize the kingdom and pose a security threat to Israel on its longest border with the West Bank, Israel Hayom reports.