RIYADH: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed developments in Palestine during a meeting on Monday at Al-Yamama Palace in Riyadh with Vice President of the State of Palestine Hussein Al-Sheikh, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

During a session attended by Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan, as well as senior Palestinians and Saudi officials, they discussed efforts to support the Palestinian cause and interests of the Palestinian people.

At least ten countries have made pledges to recognize Palestine at the upcoming UN General Assembly later this month, including France, Canada and Australia. The announcements were prompted by a Saudi-French chaired conference in July that garnered support for a two-state solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.

Al-Sheikh discussed several other issues with the crown prince, including the recent visa ban imposed by the US State Department on holders of Palestinian Authority passports, which would block Palestinian officials from entering the US to attend the General Assembly on Sept. 22.

They also discussed the “dangerous situation in the West Bank and Jerusalem ... including settlement activity, colonizts’ violence, and the withholding of (Palestinian) tax revenues (by Israeli authorities),” the Palestinian news agency, Wafa, reported.

Al-Sheikh emphasized the urgent need for a ceasefire in Gaza, the entry of aid, connecting Gaza to the West Bank under Palestinian sovereignty, and the complete Israeli withdrawal from the Mediterranean enclave.

The two sides emphasized their close coordination to enhance efforts to end the Israeli occupation and establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, Wafa added.