Thread by @gnuseibeh

Here’s a prediction. Saudi Arabia will sign a peace treaty with Israel in the next 24 months, but unlike today’s agreements, it will have to be preceded by ending the state of war between KSA and Israel. Major factors: US elections and Iran front.

Saudi Arabia, having been created prior to Israel, declared war against Israel in 1948. That was never ended and Saudi remains one of 7 nations Israel is enemies with, as per Israeli law. A technicality but it needs to be dealt with

Israel can unilaterally remove Saudi from the Israeli list of enemy states, which can be seen as a first step taken by Israel, or it can be a mutual signing of recognition (like Jordan and Egypt). It’s very different from UAE and Bahrain

KSA / Israel relations have nothing to do with “who we are” but rather legal technicalities that are quite complicated.

If I’m not mistaken, charges against Israeli fugitive Azmi Bishara who fled to Qatar after accusations in Israel that he dealt with Hizbollah including his trip to Syria, which was & still is as per Israeli law, an enemy state. So ball really in Israel’s court - at least legally

Politically, those legalities will be solvable in a few hours, but they can be both a hindrance or a sign of good will. I’m not sure whether Knesset needs to vote on removing Saudi from list of enemy states? That’s Israeli law

If I’m also not mistaken, there was a Saudi consulate in East Jerusalem in 1967 (which was then part of Jordan) but is now part of Israel’s “enemy properties”...no doubt, a lot of private Saudi properties inside Israel proper and areas occupied by Israel in 1967.

In other words, a Saudi Israeli peace treaty is a complicated one that is not as complicated as Jordan’s (but exactly same issues), but not as straight forward as UAE.

Kuwait is an interesting one in that it became independent in 1964, so not enemy of Israel but before 1967. Many Kuwaitis had properties in East Jerusalem and sent their kids to boarding school there, mainly St George’s which my family is closely connected to.

St George’s is the Anglican school in Jerusalem, in Arabic referred to as the “Bishop’s school”, as in the Anglican Archbishop of the Middle East etc. My father, uncles and later I briefly attended it.

My father recalls how pre 1948, they would sing the National Anthem (UK’s God Save the King then), in Arabic using totally different words (homeland instead of “King”). محبة الاوطان