At a recent Paris event, statements by Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich sparked international controversy. He asserted that Palestine has no people, describing the Palestinian identity as an invention. His remarks challenged centuries of history and provoked strong reactions from Palestinian leaders who viewed them as an attack on national legitimacy. The Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh condemned the statements, labeling them an expression of an extreme ideology and racism that questions the very existence of a Palestinian people. This exchange touched off debates about history, identity, and rightful claims to land that persist to this day.
Smotrich framed the narrative in stark terms, suggesting that the historical account offered by scholars and even traditional religious texts diverges from his own portrayal. He claimed that Arabs in the region arrived later, while the Jewish Zionist return began after a long exile, a view that many scholars contest as an oversimplification of a complex regional history. He asserted that to counter the Zionist movement, some have constructed a myth of a native population with inalienable rights to land in what he calls the land of Israel. The remarks were delivered during a ceremony honoring a Likud activist and former Jewish Agency board member, Jacques Kupfer, who passed away in 2021.
Denying Palestinian national identity
Smotrich emphasized a rhetoric of truth against what he described as pro-Palestinian falsifications of history and the BDS movement. In his view, true Palestinians are those who lived in the land centuries ago, while contemporary residents are cast as impostors or settlers. This perspective aligns with a broader settler-oriented ideology that views the current demographics as the legitimate basis for sovereignty. In the West Bank and East Jerusalem, around 620,000 Israeli settlers reside in settlements deemed illegal under international law by most observers, a fact Smotrich underscored to illustrate his point about historical rights. He argued that many share a conviction in their rightful claim to the land as Jews, basing this claim on a narrative of uninterrupted historic connection.
The minister’s comments also touched on definitions of national identity through legal and historical lenses. He asked readers to consider whether a single, clear set of criteria—history, culture, language, currency, and leadership—can determine nationhood. He questioned the existence of a distinct Palestinian language, currency, or centralized leadership that would qualify as a modern nation. His remarks appeared alongside a map that suggested a broader geographic vision labeled as “Greater Israel,” reflecting some early Zionist ambitions about territory.
In response, Mohammed Shtayyeh, a historian by training and the Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, highlighted the long-standing link between the Palestinian people and the land. He described this bond as part of a continuous historical narrative that predates modern political boundaries. The Palestinian leadership asserted that the land’s name, its historical associations, and its cultural landscape were foundational to Palestinian identity. Shtayyeh and other officials criticized what they saw as a recurring pattern of appropriation—the use of cultural markers and historical claims to justify political control. He maintained that Palestine’s identity is rooted in a shared heritage that has endured despite external pressures.