Israeli normalisation

Published September 28, 2023

OVER the past few weeks, there have been many reports prophesising the impending normalisation of ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel. If this development comes to pass, it would be a monumental shift in global geopolitics: the keeper of Islam’s holiest sites would be establishing ties with a state widely viewed across the Muslim world as an occupying power that has smothered the Palestinian people for decades. The Americans are certainly working overtime to make it happen, as President Joe Biden would love to use a peace deal as a trophy in international statesmanship he can flaunt come election time in the US next year. While covert Saudi-Israeli relations were reportedly being cultivated for years — apparently due to a common enemy in the shape of Iran — today normalisation efforts are very much in the open. Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto Saudi ruler, told a US network that normalisation was moving forward “every day”, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the UN General Assembly that Tel Aviv was “at the cusp” of peace with the Saudis. Moreover, Israel’s tourism minister landed in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to attend a UN event — the first time an Israeli minister has led an official delegation to the kingdom. At the same time, a Saudi delegation was in Ramallah to assure the Palestinians they had not been abandoned.

Proponents of Saudi-Israeli peace say a deal will result in a new age of brotherhood where Arab and Jews will live in amity, and that critics of the move are merely malcontents frozen in time. However, a cursory glance at Arab-Israeli relations over the past three decades paints a different picture. The Oslo Accords of 1993 were supposed to spell the beginning of the end of the conflict, paving the way for Palestinian statehood. But today, the Oslo framework lies in tatters, with the occupation strengthened, and the Palestinian people still chafing under the Israeli stranglehold. Will a Saudi-Israeli deal promise a viable Palestinian state, with a guaranteed right of return, no more settlements and East Jerusalem as its capital? This would be nothing less than a diplomatic miracle. If the Saudis can pull it off, hats off to them. But history points to a darker reality — that the Palestinian nightmare will likely continue, as their Arab ‘brothers’ make peace with their tormentors.

Published in Dawn, September 28th, 2023

Opinion

Editorial

Military option
Updated 21 Nov, 2024

Military option

While restoring peace is essential, addressing Balochistan’s socioeconomic deprivation is equally important.
HIV/AIDS disaster
21 Nov, 2024

HIV/AIDS disaster

A TORTUROUS sense of déjà vu is attached to the latest health fiasco at Multan’s Nishtar Hospital. The largest...
Dubious pardon
21 Nov, 2024

Dubious pardon

IT is disturbing how a crime as grave as custodial death has culminated in an out-of-court ‘settlement’. The...
Islamabad protest
Updated 20 Nov, 2024

Islamabad protest

As Nov 24 draws nearer, both the PTI and the Islamabad administration must remain wary and keep within the limits of reason and the law.
PIA uncertainty
20 Nov, 2024

PIA uncertainty

THE failed attempt to privatise the national flag carrier late last month has led to a fierce debate around the...
T20 disappointment
20 Nov, 2024

T20 disappointment

AFTER experiencing the historic high of the One-day International series triumph against Australia, Pakistan came...