The Saudi delegation, led by the ambassador to the Palestinian Authority, Nayef bin Bandar al-Sudairi, canceled its scheduled visit on Wednesday to the Holy Al-Aqsa Mosque after several Palestinian parties voiced their criticism of the plan and called for the prevention of such a visit, which is seen as a new step toward normalizing ties with the Israeli occupation entity.
Al-Sudairy was recently appointed by Riyadh as its non-resident ambassador to the PA. The official arrived in Ramallah on Tuesday to discuss Saudi Arabia's normalization efforts with the entity and present his credentials to President Mahmoud Abbas, marking the first visit by a Saudi delegation to Palestine in three decades.
Israeli media commented on this matter, stating, "The Saudi ambassador to the Palestinian Authority canceled his Al-Aqsa visit due to anticipated criticisms and repercussions."
The announcement of the visit "faced reactions, with some calling for its prohibition, seeing it as a sign of normalization with Israel. After understanding the sensitivities from their hosts in Ramallah [Mahmoud Abbas], the Saudis postponed the visit."
Saudi Arabia's delegation had planned to visit the holy mosque to allegedly commemorate the birth anniversary of the Prophet Mohammed PBUH, occurring on Wednesday and Thursday. However, al-Sudairi informed his hosts in Ramallah, as per Haaretz, that he "does not intend to go to the Al-Aqsa Mosque but promised to visit in the future."
In response to an inquiry by Haaretz, the Israeli occupation foreign ministry claimed that it "was unaware of this plan." According to Palestinian reports cited by the newspaper, the Saudis "requested not to publicize the date and details of the visit to prevent any Israeli interference in the visit's agenda and also to prevent potential Palestinian protests against normalization with Israel."
A recent poll conducted by the Washington Institute for Near East Studies in Saudi Arabia found that the number of Saudi citizens in favor of normalizing ties with the occupation entity has declined by nearly 20 percent in recent years.
From around 40 percent of the kingdom's population supporting this move earlier, the recent survey revealed that this number is at approximately 33 percent.
The poll also showed that vis-a-vis normalization, Saudis believed that the Palestinian ambitions come in second place, while 36% agree that it is "important" to gain "new steps toward political rights and better economic opportunities for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza."
Moreover, the results showed that not only has the percentage of support for normalization been declining over the years, but also there has been a declining reliance of Saudi public opinion on American guarantees as the report highlights "American commitments are unreliable lately."
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman confirmed earlier this month that Riyadh is on a trajectory towards normalizing ties with "Israel."
"Every day we get closer," he said in an interview with Fox News released last Wednesday.
In response to a question on the requirements of a normalization deal, the de facto Saudi leader claimed that "the Palestinian issue is very important. We need to solve that part." Adding that there had been "good negotiations" so far. Additionally, he expressed Saudi's intent to pursue nuclear capabilities if Iran does so.
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On this matter, Yair Lapid, "Israel's" opposition leader, expressed reservations about Saudi Arabia procuring a nuclear program. Echoing similar sentiments, Israeli Foreign Minister, Eli Cohen, pointed out that no normalization deal should risk the entity's security, hinting at the possible concessions Saudi might demand.
Israeli reports suggest that Saudi Arabia has outlined stringent terms for normalization. These terms include gaining "Israel's" approval for uranium enrichment, constructing a nuclear facility for peaceful use, and establishing a US-Saudi defense pact among others.
However, US officials have cautioned that any agreement with these conditions will not be in the near future.