Mohammed Bin Salman, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, received US President Joe Biden in Jeddah July 2022. Photo: BANDAR ALGALOUD / Reuters
Saudi Arabia and Israel were scheduled to sign a historic agreement within the next year. After the surprise and brutal attack by Hamas, the agreement may be in jeopardy.
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Saudi Arabia and Israel have worked towards a historic agreement to normalize relations between the two countries. The United States has supported the negotiations and, among other things, offered Saudi Arabia an American defense pact if they agree to the agreement. The attacks by Hamas could sour the atmosphere between Israel and Saudi Arabia. Palestine- The question and Iran characterize the challenges of the agreement. According to experts, the situation is at the boiling point, and further developments are uncertain. Show more info
This has happened
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says bluntly that the country is now at war. It happens after Hamas on Saturday morning first sent thousands of missiles against Israeli cities before militant members of the organization moved in and took hostages. On Sunday evening, more than 700 Israelis were killed and more than 2,000 injured in the attacks. According to Israeli media, rescue teams have found 260 dead in a festival area in southern Israel. Israel has warned of heavy retaliation and has already attacked Gaza from the air. Over 413 Palestinians have died and more than 2,300 injured, according to the health authorities in the country. Show more
– Every day we get closer.
That’s what Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed Bin Salman, said about the negotiations during the UN General Assembly in September.
The United States and President Joe Biden have been heavily involved in the negotiations between Israel and Saudi Arabia. Among other things, they have offered Saudi Arabia an American defense pact and help to develop its nuclear program if they agree to a normalization agreement normalization agreement The agreement could involve an agreement and peace and cooperation between the countries. with Israel.
At the end of September at the latest, Biden had a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu where relations with Saudi Arabia were the topic.
Both countries are allies of the US, and Foreign Minister Anthony Blinken has previously described a normalization agreement as a “top priority” for the US, as it is important for their national security.
Few Arab countries have previously recognized Israel after the country was established in 1948. For Israel, it is important to break the regional isolation in which they stand.
The king tank
But the brutal attacks by Hamas against Israel on Saturday could put a damper on the agreement between the two countries. It writes The Wall Street Journal.
– Netanyahu’s main idea is that you can put the Palestine issue on the back burner and look ahead, and deal with the regional issue here.
This is what Marte Heian-Engdal, who works at the Center for International Conflict Resolution, tells VG.
She explains that a normalization agreement is not at all of interest to the Palestinians.
– Such an agreement will mean that they will be marginalized and further sidelined.
Nor is such an agreement desirable for Iran.
– Iran has a lot to lose from Saudi Arabia and Israel getting closer to each other. It is important to have it with you when you talk about what is happening now and how this will develop, says Heian-Engdal.
In March, Saudi Arabia and Iran entered into an agreement to restore diplomatic relations between the countries. VG’s commentator Per Olav Ødegård has described the agreement as “a serious setback” for Israel’s prime minister, as Israel sees Iran as a serious threat.
See more about what the Middle East expert says in the video below:
Hamas’s big goal
The American think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has written one special report where they assess what Hamas can hope to gain from this weekend’s attack.
Since the military balance of power between Hamas and Israel is so lopsided, Hamas has no reason to believe that it can protect itself against Israel’s counterattack, writes ISW.
However, they also point out that it may be Hamas hoping the attacks contribute to souring the atmosphere between Israel and Saudi Arabia. It is likely that it will make the negotiations more difficult, writes ISW.
Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri told Aljazeera on Saturday that they are ready for a full-scale battle.
– We have one main goal: Our freedom and the freedom of our holy land, he says.
Benjamin Netanyahu (73) became prime minister for the sixth time in December 2022. Photo: AMIR COHEN / Reuters
Congratulations to Hamas
Iran’s supreme leader is Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Saturday congratulated his military leadership Hamas with the attacks, and expressed support for “anti-Zionist resistance” in the Middle East.
Following the attacks, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement there they speak for Palestine.
The Palestine issue has also previously been challenging to get the agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia in place. Saudi Arabia has wanted peace for the Palestinians, and most recently in a Fox News interview a few weeks ago Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said that Israel had to “make life easier for the Palestinians”.
On the other hand, Netanyahu’s government, which is the most right-wing and conservative in the country’s history, does not want to make any concessions to the Palestinians.
– Everything is at the boiling point
On Sunday morning, the Lebanese Hezbollah militia attacked an Israeli-controlled area on the Golan Heights.
Journalist in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Gideon Levy, stated to Al Jazeera that if Hezbollah actually joins the conflict, this will be a crisis for Israel.
Marte Heian-Engdal says it is too early to conclude what the attack means for the further escalation of the situation in Israel.
– The rocket lands in an area that many believe is suitable for Hezbollah to show that they are with the Palestinian people in this fight, but without interfering.
Heian-Engdal adds:
– But the scary thing is that everything is at the boiling point. Anything can happen. There is, of course, some sort of alliance between Islamic Jihad on the Palestinian side, Hezbollah and Hamas. There is long-standing financial and military support. So there is an important regional backdrop here.
Published:
Published: 08.10.23 at 22:38
Updated: 08.10.23 at 11:11 p.m
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2023-10-08 20:38:10
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