Saudi Arabia: On Monday morning, avid flight trackers started sharing news on social media about an unusual journey by an executive jet that flew from Israel to Saudi Arabia and spent about three hours on the ground before returning. The flight attracted attention because Saudi Arabia does not recognise Israel, and travel between the countries is barred.
It soon emerged from American and Israeli media reports, citing Saudi and Israeli sources, that the flight carried Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to a meeting with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. None of the countries confirmed that the meeting occurred. Saudi Arabia’s Foreign minister explicitly denied it.
But this clandestine gathering marks a significant development in the growing normalisation of ties between Israel and Arab countries. The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan have all recently moved to establish ties with Israel. But an agreement with Saudi Arabia would have far-reaching regional consequences. It is the Middle East’s wealthiest country and biggest military spender, and is home to Mecca and Medina, the holiest cities in Islam.
Israel’s deepening ties with the Gulf countries have largely been prompted by shared concerns about Iran. Netanyahu and bin Salman were strong backers of Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal. The Israeli and Saudi leaders presumably used their two-hour meeting to discuss their approach to the incoming Biden administration, which wants to rejoin the deal.
Read the commentary by Jonathan Pearlman in The Saturday Paper.