WASHINGTON, Jan 2 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department on Tuesday slammed recent statements from Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir that advocated for the resettlement of Palestinians outside of Gaza, calling the rhetoric "inflammatory and irresponsible."
Finance Minister Smotrich, one of the senior figures in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing coalition, had called on Sunday for Palestinian residents of Gaza to leave the besieged enclave, making way for Israelis who could "make the desert bloom."
