General News
Saudi Arabia will not recognize Israel without a Palestinian state, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said on Wednesday, as he condemned “crimes of the Israeli occupation” against the Palestinian people.
“The kingdom will not stop its tireless work toward the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital, and we affirm that the kingdom will not establish diplomatic relations with Israel without that,” said the de facto leader, according to multiple reports.
Crown Prince Mohammed made the remarks during a speech to the Shura Council, a Saudi government advisory board. The statements came as talks to end the war in Gaza seemed to have reached a deadlock and as tensions flared between Israel and Lebanon following Tuesday’s attack targeting electronic devices of Hezbollah members. Shortly after the crown prince’s speech a second wave of similar attacks was carried out in Lebanon. The explosions were widely attributed to Israel.
The crown prince added his “strong condemnation of the crimes of the Israeli occupation authority against the Palestinian people” in the speech.
Why it matters: Speculation that Saudi Arabia could establish relations with Israel has been ongoing for years. The Biden administration had been pushing for a similar Saudi-Israeli normalization deal before Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack that sparked the Gaza war. In September 2022, just weeks before the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the United Nations that Israel was “at the cusp” of an historic agreement with Riyadh.
The outbreak of the war has complicated Saudi-Israeli normalization efforts. Like other regional states, Saudi Arabia has been vocally critical of Israel’s conduct in the conflict.
Saudi Arabia remains interested in US security guarantees as part of a deal with Israel. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said in April that the kingdom was “very, very close” to a security pact with Washington tied to a future Palestinian state. The diplomat said that any such deal would “truly” require “a pathway to a Palestinian state.”
Saudi Arabia’s Gulf neighbors the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain recognized Israel in 2020 as part of the Trump administration-brokered Abraham Accords.
Know more: Prince Faisal traveled to Jordan on Wednesday for the Joint Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit on the Gaza war. These summits were organized by the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation after the start of the conflict.
Wednesday’s meeting will focus on “efforts to stop Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, end the humanitarian catastrophe, and ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid to the strip” ahead of the United Nations General Assembly next week, the official Saudi Press Agency reported.
