According to a Politico story, Mohammed bin Salman cited murdered peacemaker Anwar Sadat in discussions with US politicians to highlight his personal danger.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman allegedly warned visiting US legislators that he fears being killed because of his efforts to normalize relations with Israel.
According to a Politico article published on Wednesday, citing three people briefed on the meetings, the crown prince stated that he still plans to pursue links with the Jewish state, despite worries that it would cost him his life.
Bin Salman, often known as MBS, allegedly mentioned the killing of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, who was shot dead by Islamist terrorists in 1981, two years after signing a peace treaty with Israel. MBS questioned his interlocutors about what the US had done to defend Sadat following the historic peace treaty.
The crown prince is alleged to have used the threat of murder to underscore why any normalization deal between Riyadh and Jerusalem must include a “true path to a Palestinian state,” something the present Israeli government explicitly opposes.
“The way he put it was, ‘Saudis care very deeply about this, and the street throughout the Middle East cares deeply about this, and my tenure as the keeper of Islam’s holy sites will not be secure if I don’t address what is the most pressing issue of justice in our region,'” a source familiar with the conversations told Politico.
Nonetheless, according to the source, MBS “appears intent on striking the mega-deal with the US and Israel,” which he regards “as crucial to his country’s future.”
It was unclear how recently the crown prince had discussed his possible assassination. According to sources in the US Congress, the likelihood of reaching an Israel-Saudi normalization agreement before the November presidential election has been almost eliminated, with no time for the Senate to ratify the US-Saudi component of the agreement before its break.
In a Politico post detailing the discussions, senior foreign affairs journalist Nahal Toosi speculated that the crown prince was “saying his life is in danger to push US officials to raise pressure on Israel to bend to a deal he likes.”
“Even before the Gaza war, MBS was gambling by toying with the idea of establishing diplomatic ties with Israel,” says Toosi.
Normalization, she said, might cost the crown prince the support of Saudi youth, who are “galvanized by the first major conflict between Israelis and Palestinians that many of them have seen in their lives.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long sought rapprochement between Israel and Saudi Arabia. However, the prime minister has consistently rejected the idea of a future Palestinian state, making any such agreement hard and impossible to implement.
US President Joe Biden has stated that Saudi Arabia wishes to “fully recognize Israel” in exchange for security guarantees from Washington and the development of a civilian nuclear plant.
On Monday, the White House stated that offensive weapons shipments to Saudi Arabia have resumed, eliminating a prohibition imposed in 2021 due to human rights concerns. The restart was viewed as part of Washington’s efforts to recruit Riyadh’s assistance in establishing a cease-fire in Gaza and repelling a potential Iranian strike on Israel.
Prior to the Gaza War, normalization appeared to be on the horizon. Two Israeli ministers paid rare public visits to the desert kingdom only days before the conflict began on October 7, when hundreds of Hamas-led terrorists attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and seizing 251 captives.
