Saturday, July 5, 2025

Asked about normalization with Israel, Saudi FM says Gaza ceasefire takes priority

Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud says truce would be ‘prelude’ to Palestinian stateheood; Trump said to meet secretly with Saudi defense minister to discuss normalization, Iran. Asked about normalization with Israel, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud said Friday that the kingdom’s priority is to end the war in Gaza “as a prelude to the establishment of a Palestinian state.”

The comments came a day after US President Donald Trump reportedly hosted Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Farhan Al-Saud to discuss normalization with Israel and de-escalation with Iran amid reports that the US is looking to secure Israeli-Saudi and Israeli-Syrian normalization.

“We call for an immediate, permanent and sustainable ceasefire in the Gaza Strip as a prelude to the establishment of a Palestinian state,” said Faisal Al-Saud at a press conference in Moscow alongside his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov. (Read More)