RIYADH: Saudi Arabia on Wednesday said its long-held position that Palestinians must have their own independent state was firm and not open to negotiation, a stance Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has reiterated many times before.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry statement came shortly after President Donald Trump said he wants the US to own the Gaza Strip after all Palestinians are displaced from there and sent to other countries, where settlements will be constructed for them.
The Kingdom’s position has been a longstanding one with its leaders repeatedly calling for justice for Palestinians, who they say deserve a state of their own alongside Israel as a way to find a lasting solution to the decades long conflict.
Saudi leaders have repeatedly said any formal relations between the Kingdom and Israel hinge on the creation of a viable Palestinian state on the 1967 borders.
The ministry statement highlighted a speech by the crown prince at the Shoura Council on September 18, 2024, where he stressed that Saudi Arabia will continue its tireless work toward the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, adding the Kingdom will not normalize ties with Israel without it.
The crown prince expressed a similar sentiment during the extraordinary Arab-Islamic summit in Riyadh on Nov. 11, 2024, where he stressed the continuation of efforts to establish a Palestinian state and demanded an end to Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories.
He also urged more countries to recognize the State of Palestine, stressing the importance of mobilizing the international community to support the rights of Palestinians, which were expressed in the resolutions of the UN General Assembly by considering Palestine eligible for full membership of the world body.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia also stresses its previously announced categorical rejection of any violation of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, whether through Israeli settlement policies, annexation of Palestinian territories, or attempts to displace the Palestinian people from their land,” the statement added.
Trump, standing next to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Tuesday, said the Palestinians would be better off living outside of Gaza which has been bombed to rubble during Israel’s brutal 15-month attack.
“I don’t think people should be going back,” Trump said. “You can’t live in Gaza right now. I think we need another location. I think it should be a location that’s going to make people happy.”
The president insists Egypt and Jordan would have to take the Gazans he plans to displace. Both countries have rejected the idea outright.
Trump also did not rule out the use of American troops to help reconstruct the enclave and ensure the ownership of the territory, which he said could become the “Riviera of the Middle East,” given its temperate climate and prime location on the Mediterranean coast.
The Kingdom said that it’s the international community’s duty to work to alleviate the severe human suffering of the Palestinian people, who will remain in their land.
“Lasting and just peace cannot be achieved without the Palestinian people obtaining their legitimate rights in accordance with international legitimacy resolutions, and this is what was previously explained to the previous and current American administrations,” the ministry statement said.
