Lazar Berman: Are Saudis moving away from Israel and toward Islamists?

Welcome to The Times of Israel’s Lazar Focus. Each Friday, join host diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman for a deep dive into what’s behind the news that spins the globe.

Only 16 days before the October 7, 2023, attack, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to the podium at the United Nations. As a Saudi diplomat listened intently, he said, “We are on the cusp of an even more dramatic breakthrough, a historic peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia.”

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The war that erupted with the Hamas invasion has, not surprisingly, pushed off normalization, but it was still seen as likely once the hostages came back and Hamas was beaten.

That prognosis has been replaced by alarm in recent months. The rivalry between Saudi Arabia and the UAE — a close Israeli ally — spilled out into the open in Yemen, and continues to simmer in Sudan and Libya.

Meanwhile, Riyadh’s relations with Ankara and Doha continue to improve. In parallel, Saudi media and clerics launched a bitter war of words on the UAE, Israel, and even Jews.

Berman drills down into the economic, strategic, and military roots of the UAE-Saudi regional rivalry, and whether the idea of blocs in the Middle East is even accurate.

He then gives his assessment of whether Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman is really realigning the kingdom’s foreign policy, and what it means for a peace deal with Israel.

Lazar Focus can be found on all podcast platforms. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.

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