Herzog: Saudi normalization would be a victory, should be seriously considered

Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"

President Isaac Herzog speaks during an opening ceremony for a Mobileye campus in Jerusalem on March 26, 2024. (Haim Zach/GPO)
President Isaac Herzog speaks during an opening ceremony for a Mobileye campus in Jerusalem on March 26, 2024. (Haim Zach/GPO)

President Isaac Herzog calls for Israel to seriously consider normalization with Saudi Arabia, calling such a move a “game-changer” after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has appeared to reject any deal requiring a commitment to Palestinian statehood.

“Two days ago, I met with the US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, and heard from him what was officially announced yesterday — that there is an option for normalization with Saudi Arabia,” Herzog says at a conference organized by the Israel Democracy Institute.

“This is a move that could bring about tremendous change, a historic ‘game-changer’ that constitutes a victory over the empire of evil. I very much hope that this possibility is being seriously considered, as the empire of evil sought on October 7 to destroy the chance for normalization,” he declares.

“Our struggle, in the end, is not only a fight against Hamas. It is a wider, strategic, global, and historic battle, and we must do everything to integrate into the grand vision of normalization.”

Sullivan told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday there is an opportunity currently available for Israel to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia if Jerusalem agrees to a pathway to a future Palestinian state. Netanyahu reiterated that he would not accept a Palestinian state, even one that came with a Saudi normalization deal.

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