Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, has accused Israel of committing “collective genocide” in Gaza, marking some of his most severe criticism of the country since the Israel-Gaza war began last year.
During a gathering of leaders from Islamic nations hosted by Saudi Arabia in Riyadh on Monday, November 11, the country’s de facto leader made a strong statement:
“The Kingdom reiterates its condemnation and absolute refusal of the collective genocide committed by Israel against the brotherly Palestinian people.”
The crown prince, widely known by his initials MBS, also defended Iran, in stark contrast to his comments in 2017 comparing the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to Adolf Hitler.
MBS called on the international community to “compel Israel to respect Iran’s sovereignty and not to attack Iranian territories.”
Last year, Saudi Arabia was in the midst of negotiating a historic normalization agreement with Israel, but it recently announced that such talks were off the table without the establishment of a Palestinian state, a demand that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected.
Iran dispatched its First Vice President, Mohammad Reza Aref, to the Riyadh conference, where he expressed his condolences for the deaths of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah and Hamas leaders Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar. Saudi Arabia strongly opposes Iran-backed militias such as Hezbollah and Hamas.
Riyadh and Tehran mended ties last year after decades of animosity over regional influence.
Attendees at the high-level meeting included Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Presidents Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and Bashar al-Assad of Syria.
The stated goal of Monday’s meeting was to “unify positions” and “exert pressure” on the international community to take steps towards ending the “ongoing attacks and establishing lasting peace in the region,” according to Saudi Arabia’s governmental state agency.
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