21-10-2017 | 12:25
An "Israeli" official has confirmed that a Saudi prince who was widely reported to have visited the "Israeli" entity back in September was Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
In September, "Israeli" and Arab media reported that a Saudi prince had traveled to the entity and had held consultations with senior "Israeli" officials over "regional peace".
Some news outlets identified the Saudi prince in question as Mohamed bin Salman, who was appointed as the first in line to the Saudi throne by his father, King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, in June. However, there was no official confirmation of the news at the time.
On Friday, however, an "Israeli" official, who was speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP Arabic that Mohammed bin Salman had in fact been the prince who visited the "Israeli" entity in September.
This is while Saudi Arabia and the entity do not have formal diplomatic relations. And while there had already been reports that the "Israeli" and Saudi regimes have been tilting toward one another in recent years, a confirmed visit by an official as high in ranking as bin Salman takes the matter to a completely new and potentially explosive level as anti-"Israeli" sentiments continue to be high on the Arab street.
While the "Israeli" entity and Riyadh may be fine with cozying up to one another, many ordinary Arabs, in Saudi Arabia and other Arab states, are firmly opposed to the establishment of ties with the Tel Aviv regime because of its occupation of Palestinian lands and atrocities against the Palestinian population.
The "Israeli" entity's so-called Transportation and Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz has urged the Saudi king to invite "Israeli" Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Riyadh to establish full diplomatic relations. Back in June, "Israeli" War Minister Avigdor Lieberman called for a deal with Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, as a prerequisite for any agreement to resolve the decades-long conflict with the Palestinians.
On Thursday, Lieberman underlined the need for "a full regional agreement" with what he called "all moderate Sunni states, including Kuwait and Saudi Arabia."
But "Israeli" officials may have also miscalculated the willingness of other Arab governments to establish ties with Tel Aviv. On Wednesday, Kuwaiti National Assembly Speaker Marzouq al-Ghanim furiously told an "Israeli" delegation During an Inter-Parliamentary Union [IPU] conference in Russia to leave the hall, calling "Israeli" officials "occupiers" and "child killers."
Netanyahu has been rejoicing at the idea of enhanced relations with Arab countries, particularly since Iran struck a deal with six other countries over its nuclear program.
Some observers maintain that the stepped-up activities of the "Israeli" entity and some Arab regimes to establish ties may have been an attempt to compensate for what they believe is a change in the strategic balance in the region.
Source: Press TV, Edited by website team
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