Arab nations condemn Huckabee’s claim it would be ‘fine’ for Israel to take over neighboring nations

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee suggested Israel could legitimately claim a right not only to its own territory but to much of the land in the Middle East, prompting condemnations from multiple nations in the region.

Huckabee, a former Republican governor of Arkansas and an evangelical Christian appointed ambassador by President Donald Trump in 2025, made the remarks during a podcast interview with journalist and conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, released Feb. 20.

During the interview, Carlson referenced a verse from the Book of Genesis describing God’s promise to Abram and his descendants that He would give him the land stretching “from the Nile to the Euphrates” — territory that would encompass much of the modern Middle East, including parts of Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, and even Saudi Arabia.

“You’ve said it three times that God gave this land to this people,” Carlson told Huckabee. “It is entirely fair for me to ask what land you’re talking about. I just read Genesis 15, and I think it says from the Nile to the Euphrates, which is basically the entire Middle East. So God gave that land to His people, the Jews, or He didn’t. You’re saying He did. What does that mean? Does Israel have a right to that land?”

Huckabee responded: “It would be fine if they took it all.”

He quickly added several times that Israel is not currently seeking to conquer neighboring countries and only aims to secure the territory it presently holds.

“I don’t think in this particular day and time they’re asking for it,” he said.

Huckabee also said moments later in the interview that his statement that it would be “fine” for Israel to take over neighboring lands was “kind of hyperbolic.” Asked directly if it would be “legitimate” for Israel to demand the whole region, however, Huckabee did not definitively answer in the negative.

“I’m not sure that it would be,” he said.

Regional backlash

In a joint statement issued the following day, the foreign ministries of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, and the Palestinian Authority — along with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Arab League and the Gulf Cooperation Council — expressed “strong condemnation and profound concern” over the ambassador’s remarks.

The countries described the comments as “dangerous and inflammatory,” calling them a “flagrant violation of the principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations” and warning they pose a “grave threat to the security and stability of the region.”

The statement rejected any suggestion that Israel could exercise control over territory belonging to Arab states, including the occupied West Bank, and asserted that Israel “has no sovereignty whatsoever over the Occupied Palestinian Territory or any other occupied Arab lands.”

The ministries said they “reaffirm their firm rejection of any attempts to annex the West Bank or separate it from the Gaza Strip” and expressed “strong opposition to the expansion of settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” They warned that the continuation of Israel’s “expansionist policies and unlawful measures” would “inflame violence and conflict in the region and undermine the prospects for peace.”

US policy on West Bank annexation

The Trump administration has repeatedly spoken out against Israeli efforts to annex the West Bank. 

As Zeale News has reported, Vice President JD Vance told reporters in October 2025 that he felt personally offended when lawmakers in Israel’s Knesset signaled they would move forward with a plan to annex the West Bank.

“The West Bank is not going to be annexed by Israel,” Vance said. “The policy of the Trump administration is that the West Bank will not be annexed by Israel. That will continue to be our policy. And if people want to take symbolic votes, they can do that. But we certainly weren’t happy about it.”

Nonetheless, Israeli lawmakers have signaled they do not intend to abide by the U.S. position on the matter.

Zeale News reported that Israel’s cabinet decided Feb. 15 to begin land registration in West Bank Area C, which includes part of the State of Palestine, prompting concerns over what critics call a ‘de-facto annexation,’ according to The Times of Israel.