MBS Shaking Hands with Netanyahu to Wash off Blood
Local Editor
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is reported to be “seriously considering” setting up a “game-changing” Camp David-style summit meeting with “Israeli” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with US President Donald Trump playing host.
MBS, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, has asked the emergency task force he created to deal with the fall-out from the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi to look at the idea, sources in the kingdom with close knowledge of the discussions told Middle East Eye.
The plan is to present the crown prince, who is widely accused of involvement in Khashoggi’s killing, as a breakthrough Arab “peacemaker”.
Mohammed bin Salman believes that the photo opportunity alone would be big enough to influence the incoming and inherently more hostile US Congress in January.
“MBS asked his task force to study this proposal and he hinted that he liked the idea,” the Saudi source told Middle East Eye, referring to the suggested meeting between the crown prince and Netanyahu.
“The task force agreed that without a major stunt, there is a real danger of a series of decisions from Congress that would fundamentally set back the Saudi-US relationship, which is key for the crown prince.”
The crown prince’s inner circle is acutely aware of the damage being done to his image in Washington by near-daily negative front page reports in the US media.
All on the task force agree that the furore over Khashoggi’s murder is not a media bubble that will simply pop. They fear that the sense of anger and betrayal among Republicans on Capitol Hill, who had supported the crown prince as a reformer, is growing, the source said.
Nikki Haley, the outgoing US ambassador to the United Nations, is the latest person to break ranks with the White House. Haley said on Wednesday that bin Salman was “responsible” for the murder of Khashoggi.
Haley, who is expected to step down from her role by the end of the year, said the Saudi government should not get “a pass”.
"It was the Saudi government, and MBS is the head of the Saudi government," Haley told NBC News.
"So they are all responsible, and they don't get a pass, not an individual, not the government - they don't get a pass.”
The proposal to stage a handshake with Netanyahu divided the task force, which includes Saudi intelligence, army, media and foreign office officials and political advisers.
“Some voiced concern about the consequences of this on the Arab and Muslim world,” the source said.
Others in the task force were more enthusiastic. “They thought that the Arab Spring is so divided, and that things are under control,” said the source, referring to the political forces connected to the Arab Spring movement, who would object strongly to the normalizing of relations between Saudi Arabia and “Israel”.
The task force noted the absence of any real reaction on the Arab street to the recent visits of Netanyahu and “Israeli” government ministers and athletes to the Gulf states of Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar.
They also thought they could control reaction inside the kingdom by “using the religious authorities to justify it”, the source said.
“MBS is keen on the idea. He comes from a new generation and does not feel the weight of history on his shoulders. He has shown this repeatedly. He has no particular sympathy with the Palestinian cause,” he said.
The final recommendation of the task force was to ask for more time to prepare public opinion, but the source said the majority were in favor.
The idea of a meeting with the “Israeli” premiere has been floating around for some time. The “Israelis” and Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and Middle East envoy, asked for it before the crisis with Khashoggi blew up, the Saudi source said.
“The aim of the 'Deal of the Century' is to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel. But there was not talk about a specific day or date,” the source said, referring to the Trump- and Saudi-backed peace plan for Palestine.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
