Saudi FM Prince Faisal stresses no Israel ties unless Palestinian issue resolved

In an interview broadcast on Sunday, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan emphasised that the Kingdom isn’t ready to establish diplomatic relations with Israel unless the concerning Palestinian issue is resolved first.

“In order for the region to see true peace, to see true stability and to see real integration that delivers economic and social benefits for all of us, including Israel, is through peace, through a credible, irreversible process to a Palestinian state,” he told the CNN.

Is Saudi to finance post-conflict reconstruction in Gaza?

The interview, recorded at the recently concluded Davos summit in Switzerland, comes as the civilian death toll in Gaza continues to soar. The Hamas-run health ministry in the enclave said on Sunday more than 25,000 Palestinians have been killed in the ongoing conflict.

Israel’s air and ground offensive in response to the October 7 Hamas assault on southern Israel has also destroyed large areas of the small territory, in addition to displacing the majority of its staggering 2.3 million population.

Prince Faisal said “the Israelis are crushing Gaza, the civilian population of Gaza,” adding that “this is completely unnecessary, completely unacceptable and has to stop.” He also discussed if the Kingdom is ready to finance post-conflict reconstruction in Gaza.

Prince Faisal said it depended on the prospects for lasting peace, noting that “as long as we are able to find a pathway to the solution, a resolution, a pathway that means that we are not going to be here again in a year or two, then we can talk about anything.”

Palestinians seek a state that includes Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. But Israel is known to view all of Jerusalem as its capital and the West Bank as the historical and biblical heartland of the Jewish people.

Other notable highlights from ongoing Gaza conflict

In other latest developments related to the Israel-Hamas conflict, it has been found that the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has stepped up its military activity in and around Khan Younis. The city’s medical facilities have been battered by the Israeli assault, according to CNN.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Monday “one of the most difficult days” since the outbreak of the violence, as the IDF said at least 24 of its soldiers had been killed after a grenade struck a tank protecting Israeli troops and two buildings collapsed on soldiers.

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