Smotrich under fire after photo shows him beside ‘Death to Arabs’ graffiti

Bezalel Smotrich has faced fierce backlash after appearing in an official photo next to hate graffiti reading “Death to Arabs” during a visit to the former West Bank settlement of Sa-Nur.

The image, circulated by the Samaria Regional Council to mark 20 years since the outpost’s evacuation, showed Smotrich smiling alongside council head Yossi Dagan – just metres from the racist slogan scrawled in Hebrew. A second version of the photo was later distributed with the graffiti cropped out.

Smotrich’s office said the offensive wording “was only noticed after the photo was distributed” and insisted the minister “completely disavows” its message. “What matters is not stupid graffiti that no one noticed,” a spokesperson said, “but the historic step of reversing the expulsion from northern Samaria and rebuilding Sa-Nur.”

Opposition leader Yair Lapid condemned the optics, warning that “a senior Israeli minister smiling next to the words ‘Death to Arabs’” would damage Israel’s global standing. “What in God’s name does the government expect us to say to the world?” he asked.

The controversy comes amid growing scrutiny of the government’s settlement policy. In May, Defence Minister Israel Katz confirmed approval for 22 new West Bank outposts, including Sa-Nur and Homesh – both evacuated during the 2005 disengagement from Gaza.

Smotrich, a key figure in the far-right Religious Zionism party, has long advocated for expanding Jewish presence in the West Bank and rolling back previous evacuations.