Israel Committing ‘Collective Genocide’ – Saudi Crown Prince

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has accused Israel of carrying out “collective genocide” in Gaza, in some of his strongest criticisms of the country since the war began last year.

During a gathering of leaders of Islamic nations hosted by Saudi Arabia in Riyadh on Monday, the country’s de facto leader said: “The Kingdom reiterates its condemnation and absolute refusal of the collective genocide committed by Israel against the brotherly Palestinian people.”

More than 43,000 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel began its attacks on the enclave last year. On Tuesday, at least 30 people were killed in Gaza city and northern Gaza, with many more still under the rubble, according to the spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defence, Mahmoud Basal.

Last year, the kingdom was in the process of negotiating a historic normalization agreement with Israel but recently said that was “off the table” without Palestinian statehood, a demand rejected by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Saudi crown prince, widely known by his initials MBS, also defended Iran – a stark contrast to his comments in 2017 comparing the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to Adolf Hitler.

MBS urged the international community to “compel Israel to respect Iran’s sovereignty and not to attack (Iranian) territories.” Riyadh and Tehran repaired ties last year after decades of animosity over regional influence.

Genocide
With no solution in sight for the regional conflicts and amid a stalled normalization process with Israel, Saudi Arabia has changed its messaging over the past year from condemnations to publicly accusing Israel of genocide while urging more international protection for Iran.

Iran sent its First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref to Monday’s Riyadh conference, who in his speech mourned the deaths of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah and Hamas leaders Ismail Haniyeh and, Yahya Sinwar.

Saudi Arabia strongly opposes Iran-backed militias such as Hezbollah and Hamas.

Others attending the high-level meeting included Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

Presidents Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and Bashar al-Assad of Syria, who were also at the meeting, remain embroiled in an ongoing conflict over Turkey’s military operations in northern Syria and its support for rebel groups.

Reuters/ gSadiq