MBS Wants Statehood... After Buying Time for Normalization
Al Jazeera reports Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) stating no normalization with Israel will occur without a credible path to Palestinian statehood. This 'principled' declaration comes after months of quiet talks and US pressure for a deal that would have left Palestinians high and dry. Remember the "Abraham Accords?" Those were all about normalizing occupation, not ending it. This
isn't a sudden moral awakening; it's a strategic pause. MBS understands the optics post-Gaza Genocide are terrible for any Arab leader publicly embracing Netanyahu. The "path to statehood" is the perfect, oft-promised, never-delivered political talking point that keeps the door open while appearing to care. How many 'paths' to statehood have been paved with Palestinian blood since Oslo, only to
lead to more illegal settlements? It's almost as if 'statehood' is less a destination and more a perpetual negotiating tactic.