Saudi Arabia has reaffirmed its stance that it will not normalise relations with Israel without the establishment of a Palestinian state, contradicting President Donald Trump’s assertion that Riyadh was not making such a demand.
Trump, in a surprising statement on Tuesday, declared that the US would take over the war-torn Gaza Strip after relocating Palestinians elsewhere and would focus on its economic development. He made the remarks during a joint press conference with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry, in a statement issued on Wednesday, strongly rejected any attempts to displace Palestinians from their land, stating that the kingdom’s position on Palestinian statehood is non-negotiable.
The statement further emphasised that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had made Saudi Arabia’s stance “clear and explicit” in a manner that left no room for misinterpretation.
The issue of Palestinian displacement remains highly sensitive across the Arab world. As the Gaza conflict continues, many Palestinians fear another “Nakba,” referring to the mass dispossession and displacement that followed the creation of Israel in 1948.
The US has been leading diplomatic efforts to persuade Saudi Arabia—one of the most influential Arab nations—to establish formal ties with Israel. However, the ongoing war in Gaza, which began in October 2023, has derailed those efforts, with Riyadh shelving discussions amid widespread Arab outrage over Israel’s military campaign.
Trump has sought to encourage Saudi Arabia to follow the path of the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, which normalised ties with Israel under the Abraham Accords in 2020, becoming the first Arab nations to do so in over 25 years.
For Israel, securing diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia would be a significant breakthrough, given the kingdom’s vast influence in the Middle East, its leadership in the Muslim world, and its status as the world’s largest oil exporter.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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