{
  "id": 11863238,
  "title": "The dream of normalization with Saudi Arabia clouded Netanyahu’s judgment - opinion",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/04/the-dream-of-normalization-with-saudi-arabia-clouded-netanyahus",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-04T06:38:19.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Jerusalem Post",
    "slug": "jerusalem-post",
    "url": "https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-910184"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "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.",
  "summary": "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.",
  "key_points": [
    "Netanyahu spoke at UN in 2020 about Abraham Accords' positive changes.",
    "Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman expressed optimism about Israeli-Saudi normalization.",
    "Hamas leadership meeting in September 2023 discussed disrupting normalization process."
  ],
  "editors_take": "Netanyahu's fixation on normalization with Saudi Arabia blinded him to looming threats from Hamas, allowing the group to exploit his overconfidence and disrupt the peace process.",
  "illustration": "https://urgent.news/ill/11863238.png",
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Gulf News",
        "title": "Saudi Arabia weather: Jazan schools, university switch to remote learning on Sunday",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/04/saudi-arabia-weather-jazan-schools-university-switch-to-remote",
        "published": "2026-10-04T02:45:13.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Ajel English",
        "title": "Saudi Arabia tops global date export value for fourth consecutive year",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/04/saudi-arabia-tops-global-date-export-value-for-fourth-consecutive-year",
        "published": "2026-10-04T02:47:08.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}