No Palestinian state; if created, it should be carved out of Muslim countries: US envoy to Israel

Hardly weeks after US President Donald Trump’s visit to Arab countries — during which he accepted a luxurious aircraft from Qatar as a token of diplomatic understanding, including commitments to resolve the Palestine issue — and amid Israel’s relentless bombardment targeting aid workers and food distribution, the US envoy to Israel stated that the US is no longer interested in the formation of an independent Palestinian state.

Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel and a former governor of Arkansas and an evangelical Christian staunchly supportive of Israel, had also earlier stated that if a Palestinian state were to be formed, it is more likely that it would be carved out of a Muslim country rather than by ceding Israeli territories, suggesting that Muslim countries hold 644 times more land than is controlled by Israel, thereby acknowledging Israel’s claims over the land.

The Guardian reported that Huckabee made this statement during interviews with Bloomberg News and the BBC, confirming what many analysts had suspected was a quietly advancing agenda. However, his explicit rejection has now underscored the most direct disavowal yet of the two-state solution.

This proposal, though unprecedented in its bluntness from a US official, aligns with a wider trend within the Trump-aligned foreign policy wing, which had already downplayed Palestinian sovereignty during Trump’s first term.

Huckabee cast doubt on the viability of Palestinian claims to the West Bank by using terminology long favoured by the Israeli government, and he appeared to question whether Palestinian statehood must necessarily involve land currently occupied by Israel.

His views, deeply rooted in his religious convictions and consistent with past statements denying Palestinian national identity, reflect a hardening of US policy, which analysts say now openly undermines any remaining international consensus on a two-state framework.

While the US state department has not issued an official clarification or response, scholars and observers noted that Huckabee’s comments merely vocalise a reality that has long been visible in American actions, including political backing for Israeli settlement expansions and the steady erosion of Palestinian political representation.

Critics argue that the Trump administration’s moves have increasingly embodied a strategy of marginalising Palestinian national claims through both rhetoric and diplomatic manoeuvres.

The timing of Huckabee’s remarks has added to the controversy, as they come amid a devastating war in Gaza where tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed and nearly the entire population displaced, raising concerns about the humanitarian consequences of policies seen as dismissive of Palestinian rights. Analysts warn that his position could create significant diplomatic friction for the US, particularly with European and Arab allies who remain committed to a two-state solution but have historically relied on Washington to lead negotiations.

Shortly after Huckabee’s comments became public, the US Treasury Department announced sanctions against a prominent Palestinian human rights group, Addameer, along with five other charities, claiming ties to militant groups, despite past reports suggesting that such claims lacked substantiated intelligence.