Saudi Arabia, Jordan, UAE decry Israeli minister’s remark on nuking Gaza
International outcry grows against Amichai Eliyahu’s comments, with Riyadh saying refusal to fire him shows ‘disregard for all values of humanity, morality, religion and law’
Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and the Palestinian Authority on Sunday reacted angrily to remarks by Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu indicating that one of Israel’s options for tackling Hamas in Gaza might be dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza, condemning the government for not immediately firing him.
Riyadh said Eliyahu’s comment “shows to what extent extremism and brutality have penetrated the Israeli government.” The fact that Eliyahu was only suspended and not immediately fired, the Saudi statement continued, “reflects the Israeli government’s disregard for all values of humanity, morality, religion and law.”
Earlier Sunday, in an answer to a question in a radio interview, Eliyahu indicated that one of Israel’s options in the war against Hamas could be to drop a nuclear bomb on the Gaza Strip.
“Your expectation is that tomorrow morning we’d drop what amounts to some kind a nuclear bomb on all of Gaza, flattening them, eliminating everybody there…,” the Radio Kol Berama interviewer said.
“That’s one way,” Eliyahu responded. “The second way is to work out what’s important to them, what scares them, what deters them… They’re not scared of death.”
When it was pointed out to the minister that there are some 240 hostages currently held in the Gaza Strip, Eliyahu doubled down: “I pray and hope for their return, but there is a price to be paid in war,” he said. “Why are the lives of the abductees, whose release I really want, more important than the lives of the soldiers and the people who will be murdered later?”
The comments were quickly disavowed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who also suspended the minister from cabinet meetings. Reporters later pointed out, however, that Eliyahu was still taking part in telephone votes carried out by the cabinet on Sunday evening.
Later Sunday, the UAE’s foreign ministry called Eliyahu’s remarks “disgraceful and unacceptable.
“These statements constitute a violation of international law, as well as incitement to commit grave violations of International Humanitarian Law, such as war crimes, and raise grave concerns of an intent to commit genocide,” Abu Dhabi said.
Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Eliyahu’s remarks reveal that “Israel possesses nuclear weapons, which is an open secret.” He added that the comment also “confirms the truth of the racist view Israelis hold against Palestinians. This is the true face of the occupation government.”
Jordan said the minister’s remarks were a “call for genocide and a hate crime” against the Palestinians.
And the Palestinian Authority Foreign Ministry also issued a statement saying that the comments “by fascist minister Eliyahu are an honest declaration and clear acknowledgment of what the occupying state [Israel] is doing against our people… particularly in Gaza.”
In the interview on Sunday, Eliyahu also voiced objection to allowing any humanitarian aid into Gaza, saying, “we wouldn’t hand the Nazis humanitarian aid,” and charging that “there is no such thing as uninvolved civilians in Gaza.”
He also backed retaking the Strip and rebuilding the Israeli settlements that existed there before Israel withdrew from the area unilaterally in 2005, and when asked about the fate of the Palestinian population, he said: “They can go to Ireland or deserts; the monsters in Gaza should find a solution by themselves.”
Netanyahu was quick to reject Eliyahu’s intimation that dropping a nuclear bomb on the Gaza Strip was a possibility.
“Amichai Eliyahu’s words are detached from reality,” Netanyahu said in a statement. “Israel and the IDF are acting in accordance with the highest standards of international law in order to prevent harm to uninvolved people, and we will continue to do that all the way to victory.”
The minister was also condemned by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Minister Benny Gantz, and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, who called on Netanyahu to fire Eliyahu immediately.
Eliyahu later attempted to walk back his assertion, tweeting that “it is clear to all sensible people that the statement about the atom is metaphorical.”
“However, a strong and disproportionate response to terrorism is definitely required, which will clarify to the Nazis and their supporters that terrorism doesn’t pay,” he wrote.
The far-right minister has a history of incendiary and offensive comments.
Earlier this year, he called Bank of Israel governor Amir Yaron a “savage” and said he was causing damage to the State of Israel and should be fired, after Yaron raised the alarm about government’s controversial judicial overhaul program.
In April, he accused top security officials of leading a “rebellion” against the coalition.
Gianluca Pacchiani and Jacob Magid contributed to this report.
