Saudi Crown Prince Says Riyadh Will Not Recognize Israel Without a Palestinian State

Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, stated on Wednesday that Riyadh will not recognize Israel without the establishment of a Palestinian state. According to Reuters, he made these remarks at the annual meeting of the Consultative Council, representing his father, King Salman. In his speech, Mohammed bin Salman also strongly condemned what he called the 'crimes of Israeli occupiers' against the Palestinian people. Two sources close to Riyadh had previously told Reuters that Saudi Arabia halted U.S.-backed plans to normalize relations with Israel following the outbreak of the Gaza war. According to these sources, negotiations that were underway with U.S. support for normalizing relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel in exchange for signing a defense pact with Washington will be delayed. The Saudi Crown Prince, who is effectively the real ruler of Saudi Arabia, had stated just weeks before the start of the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza that Riyadh was close to an agreement. The UN General Assembly supported a non-binding Palestinian resolution against Israel. A poll indicated a decrease in Palestinian support for Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7. Negotiations between Gallant and Austin regarding the lost 'time' to advance a 'diplomatic' solution with Hezbollah. Hezbollah launched 40 rockets at the Golan Heights, and the Houthis attacked central Israel with a ballistic missile, resulting in no casualties.