The recommendation is a protest against the actions of Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
Jordan’s parliament has voted to recommend the expulsion of Israel’s ambassador to Amman from the country in protest at the conduct of a minister in Israel’s far-right government, who sparked controversy earlier this week after denouncing the existence of the Palestinian people denied.
During the legislature, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed al-Safadi, called on the government to take action in response to Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
Smotrich said on Sunday, “There are no Palestinians, because there are no Palestinian people,” while standing on a dais adorned with a map showing a fictitious expanded Israel, including all of the occupied Palestinian territory and Jordan.
The incident provoked furious reactions and the Israeli ambassador in Amman was summoned by the Jordanian foreign ministry to express his objections. The governments of Egypt and the United Arab Emirates also issued statements condemning Smotrich’s words and actions.
Jordanian officials said Monday that Israel’s national security adviser had told them that Israel respected the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its neighbor.
Jordan’s parliament said it was united in rejecting Smotrich’s comments, calling his actions a reflection of “Israeli arrogance.”
Responding to the parliamentarians, Jordan’s Deputy Prime Minister Tawfiq Krishan said the aftermath of the incident had united Jordanians.
“The map of Jordan is only drawn by Jordanians,” Krishan said.
Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty in 1994 after fighting each other in 1948 and 1967.
Many Jordanians are of Palestinian descent, the descendants of Palestinians displaced from their homes by Israel.
(TagsToTranslate)News
