Key Takeaways
- The Hamas attack was intended to disrupt efforts to normalise Israel‑Saudi relations.
- President Biden emphasised that the normalisation process is not dead but will take time.
- Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman urged restraint on Israel’s response to aid the peace push.
Washington: President Joe Biden, during remarks at a campaign fundraiser in Washington, said he thinks the Palestinian Hamas movement carried out attacks against Israel earlier this month.
He added that the goal was to intentionally disrupt US efforts to normalise ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel, according to the White House press pool.
“One of the reasons Hamas moved on Israel… they knew that I was about to sit down with the Saudis,” Biden said on Friday, as quoted by a reporter in the White House press pool.
“Guess what? The Saudis wanted to recognize Israel.”
Earlier this week, Biden said the process of normalising ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia is not dead but will take some time.
According to Biden, the Saudis, the Emiratis, and other Arab nations understand that their security and stability are enhanced if there’s normalisation of relations with Israel.
Saudi Arabia reportedly ended the normalisation talks after the Hamas-Israel conflict broke out on October 7, although Biden has insisted that a deal is still possible.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, during his Sunday meeting with Blinken, emphasised the need to rein in Israel’s retaliatory response to Hamas’ attacks and stop its military operations and siege on Gaza civilian population.
