A missile fired by Houthi rebels targets central Israel as airstrikes hit displaced area in Gaza
Associated PressJan 12
Netanyahu: 'The Saudis Can Create a Palestinian State in Saudi Arabia'
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Image copyright: Jack Guez/Contributor/AFP via Getty Images
The Facts
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday regarding Saudi Arabia's conditions for normalizing relations with Israel that "The Saudis can create a Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia; they have a lot of land over there."
Talks over Saudi normalization with Israel have gone on for years, with the kingdom repeatedly announcing since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel that it would not normalize ties with the country until there was a formal process to establish a Palestinian state.
More recently, Saudi Arabia has rejected a plan proposed by US Pres. Donald Trump that Gaza's population be displaced from the strip and the US "takes over." The Saudi Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that the establishment of the Palestinian state is "firm" and "unwavering."
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Though the situation since Oct. 7 has been incredibly challenging and tragic, Israel and Saudi Arabia have a unique opportunity to advance regional peace and stability. A defense pact with Saudi Arabia predicated on normalization with Israel would be a massive strategic victory in countering Iranian influence in the region and preventing Russia or China from gaining influence.
Establishment-critical narrative
A defense pact between the US and Saudi Arabia would be a terrible deal for the US and only put US interests at risk. As regional tensions are always simmering, a defense pact would mean that US forces may find themselves fighting in a war in which the US has no business being involved. US blood and treasure should not be wasted to defend a brutal monarchy.
Pro-Israel narrative
Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel was the final nail in the coffin for the establishment of a Palestinian state. Since Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, the enclave has essentially existed as a terrorist-run proto-state run by Hamas. Given the Palestinian Authority's inefficacy, Israel has no partners for peace, and the last 20 years in Gaza prove this. Though normalization with Saudi Arabia would certainly improve Israel's position in the region, it cannot tolerate a violent, terrorist-run Palestinian state.
Pro-Palestine narrative
Saudi normalization with Israel without the establishment of a Palestinian state would be a betrayal of the Palestinian cause and would effectively remove any legitimacy the Saudi state has in the Arab and Muslim worlds. Arab states negotiating individual peace deals with Israel have consistently weakened the Palestinian cause and Arab unity, with Israel never actually changing its behavior toward those it occupies. Regional peace can only be achieved after the establishment of a Palestinian state.
