The dream of normalization with Saudi Arabia clouded Netanyahu’s judgment - opinion
Three years after October 7, it is becoming increasingly clear that the question of normalization with Saudi Arabia lay at the heart of the calculations and thinking on both sides.
Exactly three years ago, before the October 7 massacre, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke before the United Nations and discussed the positive changes brought by the Abraham Accords. He mentioned Jewish weddings in Dubai, the dedication of a Torah scroll in Bahrain, and Arab students studying the Holocaust in the UAE. However, his focus was on Saudi Arabia as the next step.
He believed that a historic peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia was imminent, which would end the Arab-Israeli conflict, encourage other Arab states to normalize relations, and improve prospects for peace with the Palestinians. Normalization with Saudi Arabia seemed attainable. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, interviewed by Fox News two days before Netanyahu's UN speech, expressed optimism about the progress.
In 2023, the US was reportedly moving toward Israeli-Saudi normalization, a US-Saudi defense pact, and support for Saudi civilian nuclear development. Saudi Arabia's stance on normalization had evolved, with MBS telling Jewish leaders in 2018 that Palestinian leaders had missed opportunities for peace. In March 2022, MBS himself stated that Israel was a potential ally.
The proximity of normalization to reality was apparent prior to October 7. An agreement with such a significant Arab power would have eclipsed the Abraham Accords. Nevertheless, Netanyahu's optimism was misplaced. Egypt and the UAE's intelligence cooperation with Israel and the warnings about Hamas's preparations for the attack came from a prime minister who was overconfident in Israel's ability to handle the Hamas threat and dazzled by the prospect of such a historic achievement.
Normalization with Saudi Arabia posed a significant strategic threat to Hamas. In a Hamas leadership meeting on September 26-27, 2023, Sinwar discussed the need for "extraordinary action" to disrupt the normalization process and intensify the conflict, particularly over Jerusalem and al-Aqsa. Even though the planning for Operation al-Aqsa Flood started earlier, the normalization issue influenced the timing of the operation.
Hamas sought to undermine the normalization process and the Arab Peace Initiative, while Netanyahu worked tirelessly to push for it. The warning signs regarding normalization were largely ignored, allowing Hamas to achieve its objective.
Written by urgent.news from Jerusalem Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
