From the Liveblog of
Sunday, October 27, 2024
Sa’ar says Israel should seek alliances with Kurds and Druze in the region
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"
Israel should take steps to strengthen ties with Kurds and Druze abroad in order to create a “minority alliance” against Iran, alongside efforts to sign agreements with additional Arab countries, “first and foremost with Saudi Arabia,” Minister-without-portfolio Gideon Sa’ar tells a right-wing gathering in Jerusalem.
“In international relations in general and in the Middle East in particular, we must detach ourselves from the thought that the reality as it is known to us now will survive forever,” the New Hope chairman says, explaining that Turkey and Iran used to be allies, while Egypt and Jordan were adversaries and it is impossible to know how things will shake out in the future.
And while common wisdom states that “an alliance with the moderate Sunni Arab countries will ensure Israel’s security against the Iranian axis,” many of these nations have been critical of Israel for its actions against Iran and its proxies, he tells attendees at the Middle East Summit, a conference in Jerusalem organized by Israel 365, an Israeli media outlet aimed at American evangelicals.
“Make no mistake: I support the cultivation of relations with the Arab countries that have signed agreements with us. I also believe that agreements should be signed with additional Arab countries, and first and foremost with Saudi Arabia. At the same time — I would like to argue that our set of expectations from our relationships with them must be realistic and grounded in reality,” he continues.
According to Sa’ar, as a national and religious minority in the region, Israel ought to work “to establish its ties with other minorities in the region” such as the Kurds and Druze.
Regarding Syria, the country must not be allowed be used as a supply route for Iranian weapons being sent to Hezbollah, and “Israel must make it clear to Assad that if he chooses to harm Israel’s security… he is putting his regime in danger,” Sa’ar states.
Turning to the Palestinians, the hawkish minister states that faced with international pressure to agree to a two-state solution, “we must put up a political iron wall.”
“There is and will never be any substitute for full operational Israeli military control of the territory from the sea to the Jordan,” he states.
