Huckabee’s Israel land remarks condemned as ‘dangerous’ as controversy rumbles on

Huckabee’s Israel land remarks condemned as ‘dangerous’ as controversy rumbles on Arab and Islamic governments issue joint statement denouncing the comments made on Tucker Carlson podcast Arab and Islamic countries jointly condemned remarks by the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee , who suggested Israel had a biblical right to a vast swath of the Middle East. Huckabee, a former Baptist minister and a fervent Israel supporter, was speaking on the podcast of Tucker Carlson . In an episode released on Friday, Carlson pushed Huckabee on the meaning of a biblical verse sometimes interpreted as saying that Israel is entitled to the land between the Nile River in Egypt and the Euphrates in Syria and Iraq. In response, Huckabee said: “It would be fine if they took it all.” When pressed, however, he continued that Israel was “not asking to take all of that”, adding: “It was somewhat of a hyperbolic statement.” The backlash widened sharply on Sunday as more than a dozen Arab and Islamic governments – alongside three major regional organisations – issued a joint statement denouncing the US diplomat’s comments as “dangerous and inflammatory”. The statement, released by the United Arab Emirates’ foreign ministry, was signed by the UAE, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia , Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria and the State of Palestine, as well as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Arab League and the Gulf Cooperation Council. They said the comments contravene the UN Charter and efforts to de-escalate the Gaza war and advance a political horizon for a comprehensive settlement. Earlier, several Arab states had issued unilateral condemnations. Saudi Arabia described the ambassador’s words as “reckless” and “irresponsible”, while Jordan said it was “an assault on the sovereignty of the countries of the region”. Kuwait decried what it called a “flagrant violation of the principles of international law”, while Oman said the comments “threat...