Israel rubbishes reports of Saudi suspending talks on peace deal

After reports of Saudi Arabia reportedly conveying its decision to the Biden administration to suspend discussions about normalising relations with Israel,Israeli authorities rubbished such reports and asserted that discussions were still in progress, media reports said.

Arab news outlet Elaph, while quoting an Israeli official from the Prime Minister's Office, said thatRiyadh has used the United States as an intermediary to inform it of its decision to end the peace deal. The unverified report said that Saudi cited concerns over the "extremist" nature of Israel's right-wing government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Saudi officials reportedly believed that this government's stance was obstructing any potential progress in relations with Palestinians and, consequently, with Saudi Arabia.

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The report further elaborated that Saudi Arabia was discouraged from pursuing a potential peace deal due to Prime Minister Netanyahu's perceived "acceptance" of demands put forth by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. It is worth noting that the Saudis view both leaders as "extreme right-wing" figures.

Later, in a conversation with Channel 12 news, Israeli authorities refuted the report, dismissing it as false and confirming that the peace deal is very much in place.

'Palestinian peace is important'

Earlier on Wednesday (September 13), US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stressed that Saudi Arabia has communicated to the Biden administration the importance of addressing Palestinian issues as a prerequisite for any normalisation agreement with Israel.

“It is also clear from what we hear from the Saudis that if this process is to move forward, the Palestinian peace is going to be very important too,” he said during a conversation with the podcast Pod Save the World.

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Last month, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen in an interview with Elaph said, “The Palestinian issue will not be an obstacle to peace." “We also proved this in the Abraham Accords. We all have an interest in improving life in the areas of the Palestinian Authority."

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According to three United Nations diplomats who spoke to The Times of Israel on Thursday, Saudi Arabia is set to co-host an event on the United Nations General Assembly sidelines this week. The event will be focused on revitalising the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

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