RIYADH: Prince Turki Al-Faisal, the former Saudi ambassador to the US and the UK, on Sunday warned that the security of Gulf states is under threat from a “pariah state” following the recent Israeli attack on Qatar.
Prince Turki described Israel’s Sept. 9 aggression, when it targeted Hamas leaders in Qatar as they discussed a ceasefire agreement that would end the Israeli war on Gaza, as “treacherous” and called for Gulf states to rethink their approach to security as a result.
Speaking at the Dean of Ambassadors’ Gala Dinner marking the golden jubilee of Arab News at the Cultural Palace in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter, Prince Turki said: “The Gulf region is witness nowadays to an aggressively treacherous attack by Israel on the sovereignty of Qatar. This attack is a reminder to all countries of the Gulf that their common security is under threat by a pariah state that gives no regard to any law or rule governing international relations.”
He added: “This attack is an eye-opener to question the credibility and reliability of alliances when threats come from Israel. This dictates our states to rethink the nature of threats and to rebuild their strategic policies to safeguard their security by all means to face such threats. Israel must not be allowed a free hand.”
While addressing Sunday’s event, Prince Turki reminisced about the establishment of Arab News, which he helped found back in 1975, and congratulated staff at the newspaper on its 50th anniversary.
In his speech, he also addressed the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and the role of the international community, particularly the US.
“I believe that no region in our world has felt the impact of the state of international uncertainty more than the greater Middle East region,” he said. “Who is to blame for this continued situation is an open question. However, while countries and leaders of the region bear a responsibility, the US bears the biggest share of this responsibility.
“We see the US descending from the role of honest broker to the role of the staunch ally of Israel. The blatant double standard practiced by the US in dealing with the Israeli occupation of Palestine and its recent genocidal war on Gaza and the West Bank are plainly witnessed not only by Arabs but by all peoples around the world.
“In order for President (Donald) Trump to be the peacemaker, as he wants to be, he should correct the past mistakes committed by the US to the peace and security of its friends and allies.”
Prince Turki welcomed the recent progress made toward the realization of a two-state solution, as a diplomatic push by Saudi Arabia and France yielded a series of recognitions of the Palestinian state by Western powers at last week’s UN General Assembly. And he hit back at accusations by the Israeli government and its supporters that recognition is a reward for Hamas and its Oct. 7 attacks.
“Among the many tropes faced by the Kingdom and France and all countries that recognized Palestine as a state is that this is a reward to Hamas. What a deceitful and evil assertion to deny Palestinian people their inalienable right to their own state,” he said.
“It is the 80 years old Israeli colonial occupation of Palestine and denial of the Palestinian people their right to self-determination that rewards Hamas and other similar groups. Without the occupation, there will not be resistance to it.”
