Since the start of the new war sparked by the “Hamas invasion” from “Gaza” (liberated from “Occupation” in 2005) towards southern Israel, attention has been implicitly, or publicly, directed towards the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to use his exceptional standing with Arabs, Israelis, Americans, Iranians, Russians and Chinese, for an initiative to stop the war and stop the bloodshed, especially in the nowadays bloodied Gaza. Such an initiative is still possible and much required.
Even the opinion piece published by Israeli historian Yuval Noah Harari (whom many consider one of the most important writers of our times), translated and published by “Shafaf” yesterday, included a call for a coalition of the willing – ranging from the US and the EU to Saudi Arabia and the Palestinian Authority – should take responsibility for the Gaza Strip away from Hamas, rebuild Gaza and simultaneously completely disarm Hamas and demilitarise the Gaza Strip.
This is an indication of the status of Mohammed bin Salman at the current moment.
However, the Saudi Foreign Ministry’s statement, published today, is not enough.
It is natural for the Saudi statement to focus on what the people of Gaza are exposed to now. But the statement ignores war crimes to which Israeli civilians were subjected, which were not denied by the MB leader Saleh Al-Arouri himself, who claimed that “leadership instructions were not to attack women and children”!
As a reminder, in 2002, Saudi Arabia presented the famous Arab Peace Initiative from Beirut, but the two countries that carried the initiative to the Israelis were the only two that had, already, signed a peace treaty with Israel. That was one of the reasons for its rejection by the late PM Ariel Sharon.
Only Saudi Arabia is now capable of proposing a way out of the present crisis and a crossing towards the desired peace.
It will be difficult for the Israeli government and the Israeli Knesset to reject a Saudi initiative welcomed by Israeli public opinion at this particular moment. That is, if it is “balanced”.
All eyes are still on Mohammed bin Salman to make a historic initiative that will save the blood of Gazans and Israelis, and bring us closer to ending the state of war that both Arabs and Israelis are tired of.
A state of war desired by the mullahs of Tehran.
But, certainly, not by the proud people of Iran.
Pierre Akel
