US Ambassador Mike Huckabee set off a storm on Saturday after saying it was okay for Israel to take over neighbouring countries.
Mike Huckabee faces heat for controversial remark
His remarks drew a rare joint response from more than a dozen nations, all of which slammed his words as “dangerous and inflammatory.”
“It would be fine if they took it all… They don’t want to take it over. They’re not asking to take it over,” Huckabee said to Tucker Carlson in an interview.
President Donald Trump picked Huckabee as the US Ambassador to Israel, and he’s often drawn criticism for backing right-wing and Zionist views. Last June, Huckabee insisted that the US was done supporting an independent Palestinian state, and even floated the idea of moving on to other “Muslim countries.”
Fourteen Arab nations push back
Fourteen Arab and Islamic nations, along with the Gulf Cooperation Council, the League of Arab States, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, fired back with a joint declaration condemning Huckabee’s comments.
They warned that Israel’s expansionist policies only fuel more violence and make peace even harder to reach.
The statement, released Saturday night, called Huckabee’s remarks “dangerous and inflammatory,” and said they were deeply concerned.
The group pointed out that the comments suggest Israel could take control of land belonging to Arab states, including the occupied West Bank.
The signatories didn’t mince words. They flatly rejected Huckabee’s claims, stressing that Israel has no sovereignty at all over the Occupied Palestinian Territory or any other occupied Arab lands.
