Ankara:Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated that Egypt would lose the Sinai Peninsula if it attacked Israel.

According to Anadolu Agency, Smotrich made this declaration in a video interview from his home, suggesting that Egypt's understanding of such potential consequences would deter any attack on Israel. He emphasized that such a scenario "will not happen again."

The remarks were made just before Egypt's commemoration of the 1973 war, which led to the eventual return of the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt after years of Israeli occupation. There was no immediate response from Egyptian authorities regarding Smotrich's comments.

On the same day, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi affirmed the readiness of Egypt's armed forces to defend the nation, its resources, and national security "at all times and under any circumstances."

A peace treaty between Egypt and Israel was signed in Washington, DC in March 1979, following the Camp David Accords of 1978. This treaty ended the state of war between the two countries and facilitated Israel's withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula, forming the basis for formal relations between Egypt and Israel for decades.