On Monday, leaders from Arab and Muslim nations gathered in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, for a high-level summit. The summit commenced with a call from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, urging the international community to “immediately halt the Israeli actions against our brothers in Palestine and Lebanon.” He described Israel’s military campaign in Gaza as “genocide,” according to reports from AFP.
The Crown Prince reiterated Saudi Arabia’s “support for the brothers in Palestine and Lebanon to overcome the disastrous humanitarian consequences of the ongoing Israeli aggression.”
A draft resolution from the summit underscored steadfast backing for Palestinian aspirations, focusing on the need for “firm support” for their “national rights,” particularly their “right to freedom and to an independent, sovereign state.”
This position stood in contrast to statements made by Israel’s new Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, who dismissed the feasibility of a Palestinian state, arguing it would become a “Hamas state.”
“I don’t think this position is realistic today, and we must be realistic,” Sa’ar remarked in Jerusalem.
Crown Prince Mohammed also addressed tensions between Israel and Iran, urging Israel to avoid attacking Iran, underscoring the growing diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran, a former regional adversary.
These remarks highlight the fact that Saudi-Israeli normalization appears distant.
While Saudi Arabia and Israel had been moving toward establishing formal ties before the October 7, 2023, Hamas assault on Israel, Saudi Arabia froze U.S.-backed plans to normalize relations with Israel following that attack and the ensuing conflict in Gaza.
In September, the Saudi Crown Prince reiterated that establishing an “independent Palestinian state” was a key prerequisite for normalization.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, reaffirmed this stance last month, echoing the Crown Prince’s description of the Gaza events as “genocide” and condemning what he referred to as the “complete blockade” of northern Gaza.
{Matzav.com}