Israeli finance minister and far-right politician Bezalel Smotrich told a June 20 broadcast interview that a Palestinian state would be "Gaza expanded 20-fold" and "more dangerous than Iran" and must be prevented. He said Gaza should remain under Israeli military control and reiterated his long-standing opposition to a two-state solution. The international community broadly regards a two-state outcome as the only viable path to Israeli-Palestinian peace; Israel’s far right remains strongly oppos

2026-06-21

Israeli finance minister and far-right politician Bezalel Smotrich told a June 20 broadcast interview that a Palestinian state would be "Gaza expanded 20-fold" and "more dangerous than Iran" and must be prevented. He said Gaza should remain under Israeli military control and reiterated his long-standing opposition to a two-state solution. The international community broadly regards a two-state outcome as the only viable path to Israeli-Palestinian peace; Israel’s far right remains strongly opposed.