Saudi Arabia puts Israel deal on ice amid war, engages with Iran: Report

Saudi Arabia is putting United States-backed plans to normalise ties with Israel on ice, two sources familiar with Riyadh’s thinking told Reuters news agency, signalling a rapid rethink of its foreign policy priorities

Saudi Arabia is putting United States-backed plans to normalise ties with Israel on ice, two sources familiar with Riyadh’s thinking told Reuters news agency, signalling a rapid rethink of its foreign policy priorities as war escalates between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas.

The conflict has also pushed the kingdom to engage with Iran. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman took his first phone call from Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi as Riyadh tries to prevent a broader surge in violence across the region.

The two sources told Reuters there would be a delay in the US-backed talks on normalisation with Israel which was a key step for the kingdom to secure what Riyadh considers the real prize of a US defence pact in exchange.

Until Iran-backed Hamas sparked a war on October 7 by launching a devastating attack on Israel, both Israeli and Saudi leaders had been saying they were moving steadily towards a deal that could have reshaped the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia had until the latest conflict indicated it would not allow its pursuit of a US defence pact to be derailed even if Israel did not offer significant concessions to the Palestinians in their bid for statehood, sources had previously said.

But an approach that sidelined Palestinians would risk angering Arabs around the region, as Arab news outlets broadcast images of Palestinians killed in Israeli retaliatory air strikes.

Hamas fighters killed more than 1,300 Israelis in their October 7 attack and more than 1,952 Palestinians had been killed by Friday in Israel’s continuing strikes on Gaza in response.