Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has reportedly told visiting US lawmakers that he fears being assassinated because of his efforts to normalise relations with Israel.
According to a Politico report published on Wednesday, Crown Prince has mentioned that he’s putting his life in danger by pursuing a grand bargain with the U.S. and Israel that includes normalising Saudi-Israeli ties.
Bin Salman, often known as MBS, reportedly mentioned the killing of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, who was shot dead in 1981, two years after signing a peace treaty with Israel. MBS asked his interlocutors what the US had done to defend Sadat following the historic peace treaty.
According to three sources briefed on the conversations, the crown prince remains committed to striking the mega-deal with the United States and Israel, despite the risks involved, Politico reported. He sees it as critical for his country's future.
Various reports have revealed the basic elements of this highly secret pact, which is still in development. It involves a number of US obligations to Saudi Arabia, including treaty-based security assurances, funding for a civilian nuclear program, and economic investment in areas such as technology.
According to reports, in exchange, Saudi Arabia will limit its trade with China. It would also develop diplomatic and other links with Israel, which would be extremely beneficial to the Israelis given Saudi Arabia's status among Muslim nations.
To MBS' disappointment, the Israeli government has been unwilling to include a credible path to a Palestinian state in the pact.
“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 the holy sites of Islam 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.
Nahal Toosi, the news outlet's senior foreign affairs journalist, suggested 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.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long sought normalisation between Israel and Saudi Arabia. However, he has repeatedly rejected the idea of a future Palestinian state, making any such agreement complicated and impossible to implement. The latest escalation in Gaza has had a huge influence on normalisation discussions between the two countries.
Israel's war on Gaza has claimed the lives of at least 40,005 people and injured 92,401 others. During the Hamas-led strikes against Israel on October 7, an estimated 1,139 persons were killed.
