Finding a suitable solution to the Palestinian cause and achieving a just and comprehensive peace is a “strategic option and a regional and international requirement,” the three leaders said in a joint communique after the tripartite summit in the Egyptian city of El Alamein.
The summit was held amid ongoing talk about a possible normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia. In their communique, Sisi, Abdullah, and Abbas did not make any direct reference to reports about US efforts to broker a deal between Jerusalem and Riyadh. They stressed their “adherence” to the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, however, which stipulates that the Arab states would normalize their relations with Israel only after a full Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 lines and the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.
In the past, the Palestinian leadership accused the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Sudan of violating the terms of the Arab Peace Initiative by reaching separate normalization agreements with Israel.
Saudi Arabia's moves amid rumors of normalization with Israel
Last weekend, Saudi Arabia said it had named its ambassador to Jordan, Nayef al-Sudairi, as “Ambassador Extraordinary to the State of Palestine and Consul-General in Jerusalem.” READ MORE
