The Gaza idea was swiftly rejected by Arab countries, among them Saudi Arabia. The Gulf powerhouse released a predawn statement right after Trump floated the proposal Tuesday evening.
The kingdom made clear that it is standing by its demand that a Palestinian state first be established before it will normalize relations with Israel. The precondition is “nonnegotiable and not subject to compromises,” the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement Wednesday.
The statement directly contradicted Trump, who had just told reporters in Washington that Saudi Arabia had dropped the precondition. One senior Saudi royal said what the U.S. leader was proposing would be tantamount to an “ethnic cleansing” of Gaza.
By proposing to “clean out” Gaza, Trump has earned little but suspicion and anger in Arab countries. Efforts by the U.S. administration to soften the stance have done little to mollify them. The issue of Palestinian statehood is at the heart of the controversy over Trump’s Gaza proposal. Given the Saudi population’s broad support for the Palestinians, it would be difficult for the government to accept any agreement that does not address their aspirations for statehood, which complicates the prospects of a deal with Israel. Before Trump took office for his second term, there was some cause for optimism that Saudi-Israel normalization might move forward. The new American president has for years fostered a good working relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia. But now strains seem to be emerging in that relationship.
Prince Turki al-Faisal, Saudi Arabia’s former spy chief and former ambassador to the United States, told CNN on Wednesday that Trump “will get an earful from the leadership here” not only about the lack of wisdom in what he is proposing but also the injustice of “ethnic cleansing.”
