The Saudi response was swift — reiterating Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s demands for an independent Palestinian state as part of any normalization agreement and rejecting the “infringement on the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people” or “attempts to displace” them from their land.

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince sees an opportunity to get a defense, technology and nuclear cooperation deal but he will have to tread carefully given his young population has reawakened to the Palestinian cause amid the war in Gaza.

Saudi Arabia will not establish formal relations with Israel unless Palestine is recognised as an independent state, it has announced.