Saudi Arabia responded Thursday to remarks made by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who said: "If Saudi Arabia tells Israel normalization in exchange for a Palestinian state, no thank you, keep riding camels in the desert."
Journalist Malek al-Rouqi, based in Riyadh, quoted the statement and wrote: "Since the New York summit, Israeli extremists have been furious with Saudi Arabia and its clear stance." He was referring to the conference on the two-state solution promoted by Saudi Arabia and France.
A Saudi social media activist added: "We ride camels and walk through the desert? If that's the case, why are you chasing after us, panting for normalization?"
Following the Saudi backlash, the finance minister released a video in which he expressed regret over his phrasing. "My comment about Saudi Arabia was certainly ill-considered, and I regret the offense it caused," he said.
