Prince Turki al-Faisal, a senior Saudi royal, has called on the US and the UK to do more to pressure Israel to end its war on Gaza.
Speaking during an event at Chatham House in London on Friday, Prince Turki – who led Saudi Arabia’s intelligence for over two decades – called on Washington to deny Israel financial and military support.
“A lot of financial help goes to Israel from the United States,” the 79-year-old, whose father King Faisal ruled the kingdom between 1964 and 1975, told reporters and foreign policy analysts in the British capital.
He stated that “Israeli lobbyists” enjoyed tax-free status in the US because they were considered to be “philanthropic or humanitarian”, rather than as representing the interests of Israel. He urged for such tax exemptions on pro-Israel groups to be withdrawn by the Americans in light of the ongoing conflict.
“Denial of weapons and intelligence and other support – military and security – will also put pressure on Israel,” he said.
“There are many tools that are available to the United States, not simply harsh talk, which seems to have gotten us nowhere. But is America ready to do that?”
“I’m not too optimistic,” he said, answering his own question.
On Britain, Prince Turki said the country had “a special responsibility for what is happening in Palestine” due to its role in the “ill-begotten Balfour Declaration in 1917”.
He welcomed the new UK government’s decision to restrict the sale of some weapons to Israel, but added he would “like to see more done by the United Kingdom”.
“I think [it] should recognise the state of Palestine. It’s long overdue.”
On prospective Saudi normalisation of ties with Israel, he reiterated the kingdom’s position that normalisation would come when a Palestinian state was established.
Asked what such a state would look like, he said it referred to 1967 borders, inclusive of occupied East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.
He said that though he was not privy to official discussions, the chances of normalisation at present were slim due to Israel’s stance on Palestinian statehood.
“The whole [Israeli] government is saying no Palestinian state. So how can there be normalisation between us and them with those positions in place?”
Prince Turki repeated on several occasions that he was speaking in a personal capacity, and did not have a role in the Saudi government.
Riyadh had appeared to be making progress in forming ties with Israel during US-led discussions last year, which were later derailed by the outbreak of war on 7 October.
Prince Turki dismissed speculation that Hamas may have carried out its surprise attack on southern Israel – which killed around 1,200 people (mostly civilians) – in order to torpedo Saudi-Israel normalisation.
For Hamas to have done what it did, it would have required to prepare for it,” he said. “At least a couple of years to gather the human and material resources to launch a campaign like that.”
“Those couple of years preceded the talks between us and the Americans about the establishment of a Palestinian state and normalisation with Israel.”
He said that while it may not have been the aim of Hamas, impacting the Saudi discussions would have been “an added benefit” in the Palestinian group’s eyes.
Prince Turki said that he did not think that “Egypt or Qatar or any other country” could force Hamas to put down its weapons, and that only people in Gaza could do that.
“I think the people in Gaza not only have a right to do that, but they will eventually have to do it,” he said.
But he added that Palestinians’ ability to “influence Hamas” were curtailed by the fact that “Israel is given a free license by the world” to continue its war.
Since 7 October, Israeli forces have killed over 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, most of whom are women and children.
Crackdown on Palestine solidarity
Polling during the early stages of the war showed that over 90 percent of Saudis believed that Arab states should cut ties with Israel.
Despite that, there has been a crackdown on acts of Palestinian solidarity in Saudi Arabia, with reports of people being detained for expressing opinions on the conflict on social media, as well as for wearing a Palestinian keffiyeh in the holy city of Mecca.
Asked by Middle East Eye about such a crackdown on solidarity, as well as more general restrictions on free speech in the kingdom, Prince Turki played down such concerns.
“I haven’t felt myself any restrictions on my expressions of support for Palestine in Saudi Arabia, nor have I seen any particular reporting on that,” he said. “Except perhaps in some publications that are not friendly to Saudi Arabia.”
“But what I see of the Saudi press, whether written or on television or in social media, is full support for Palestine and no restriction on expressing support for Palestinians.”
Elsewhere, the 79-year-old was asked about Saudi Arabia’s restoration of ties with Iran last year.
He said that the mending of relations had led to limited changes, such as discussions between the two countries in international arenas, as well as an increase in the number of Iranian pilgrims on the annual Hajj pilgrimage.
“Other than that, I have not yet seen any particular change in, for example, Iranian efforts to interfere in the affairs of Arab states,” he said, pointing to Tehran’s role in Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen.
Prince Turki spoke at length about his concerns regarding Iran’s nuclear programme, stating that Riyadh’s historic position was that “the Middle East should be a zone free of weapons of mass destruction”.
He said that ironically this idea was first proposed in 1974 by the Iranians, under the rule of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
Asked what would happen if the world was unable to stop Iran’s nuclear ambitions, he said: “My leadership has stated that if Iran gets nuclear weapons, that Saudi Arabia will also seek to acquire similar capability.”
Meanwhile, in Yemen, he said that the Houthis were “hold[ing] the world hostage” with its attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea in solidarity with Palestinians.
He added that if Iran was unable to control its Houthi allies, “then we’re all in a bit of trouble”.
In Syria, he said that talks with Saudi Arabia were “a work in progress”, but that he had not seen progress from Damascus on several issues, including its relationship with groups such as Hezbollah and in its conduct towards “its own people”.
