'This is our homeland': Netanyahu responds to Obama accusations that Israel stole Palestinian land

Jerusalem Post/Israel News"The Jewish people are not foreign occupiers in the land of our forefathers," Netanyahu said in a video posted to X/Twitter. "Our history is not a colonial enterprise. Our land is not stolen land."Follow us on GooglePrime Minister and Likud party chairman Benjamin Netanyahu visits supporters in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, ahead of Israel’s upcoming general elections, October 14, 2026.(photo credit: Sharon Leibel/Flash90)OCTOBER 16, 2026 15:50Updated: OCTOBER 16, 2026 16:37Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded on Friday to comments made by former US president Barack Obama, in which he accused Israel of taking "land off people and being "excessive," referring to Israel's treatment of the Palestinian people throughout the country's history.Obama made the comments during a visit to Belfast, Northern Ireland, on Tuesday."The Jewish people are not foreign occupiers in the land of our forefathers," Netanyahu said in a video posted to X/Twitter. "Our history is not a colonial enterprise. Our land is not stolen land. This is our homeland."Netanyahu called Obama's Belfast comments a "regrettable statement," emphasizing the connection between the Jewish People and the land of Israel, noting its biblical name, "Judea.""That's where Jews come from," he said. "And we've been attached to it for thousands of years."Former US president Barack Obama delivers his speech at the dedication ceremony for the opening of the Obama Presidential Centre in Chicago, Illinois, US, June 18, 2026. Picture taken through the bulletproof glass. (credit: REUTERS/JONATHAN ERNST)The prime minister differentiated Israel from European nations with colonial pasts, saying that the Jews in Israel are not "the Dutch in Indonesia... the Belgians in the Congo, we're Jews in Judea."Obstacle to peace lies with Israel's, America's enemies, Netanyahu saysRegarding the path to a peace agreement, Netanyahu said that the obstacle to peace is not Israel, but rather the enemies in the region shared by Israel and the United States.Specifically, Netanyahu noted the enemies' "refusal to recognize the Jewish people's right to a state of our own, in any boundary."This is a developing story.Follow us on Google