Saudi Arabia lashes Israel over Egypt-Gaza border stance

In a statement, Saudi Arabia condemns Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claims that the Philadelphi Corridor on the Gaza-Egypt border represents a security threat, backing Egypt’s insistence that Israeli troops withdraw from the area.

Riyadh “strongly condemns and denounces” Israel’s comments on the corridor, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry says, accusing Israel of making “futile attempts to justify continued violations of international laws and norms.”

Israel says the area is a major smuggling artery and Netanyahu claimed Monday that pulling troops out of the area would allow Hamas to both re-arm and spirit hostages out of the Strip.

Egypt, which razed thousands of homes on its side of the border nine years ago to create a buffer zone with Gaza, has said that the smuggling is no longer an issue and rejects an Israeli presence on the Gazan side of the frontier.

Saudi Arabia “affirms its solidarity and support for Egypt,” the statement reads.