The World Jewish Congress sent a letter to the Saudi King expressing their sorrow over the tragic loss of life in Mecca. Can this lead to improved Saudi-Israeli relations? Palestinian Jordanian dissident Mudar Zahran thinks that it can.
The World Jewish Congress, who represents 100 affiliated Jewish communities across the globe, sent a letter to Saudi King Salman expressing the Jewish people’s sorrow about the great loss of life that occurred during the Hajj pilgrimage recently, where over 700 people were killed: “We want to express to you our most sincere and deepest condolences at the tragic loss of life in Mecca. What should have been a moment of spiritual uplift during the Hajj became instead a moment of sorrow and we join you in mourning for the souls of the hundreds of pilgrims who cannot return to their families.” The question remains, can the great tragedy that occurred in Mecca during the Hajj and the World Jewish Congress’s reaction to it lead to improved Saudi-Israeli relations? Palestinian Jordanian dissident Mudar Zahran thinks that it can.
Among the Arab countries, Egypt and Saudi Arabia are the leaders of the moderate Sunni camp opposed to the radical Islamists. Due to this fact, Zahran considers Saudi Arabia a major moderating force in the Middle East: “Saudi Arabia banned the Muslim Brotherhood while Jordan allows and empowers them. Saudi Arabia is the only country in the Middle East fighting against both ISIS and Iran’s militias. Iran itself has protested against Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Muhammed Bin Salman for his anti-Iranian terror stance.”
“Saudi Arabia and Israel have mutual enemies,” he noted. “Saudi Arabia is the only capable partner in the Middle East to confront Iran and Sunni Islamist extremism. Let me make this easy for you. Without Israel, ISIS would be in Jordan tomorrow. But without Saudi Arabia, Iran will be in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman by dinner time.” He noted that Israel and Saudi Arabia already are fighting against the same terrorists and despite the Saudi Kingdom’s strong support for the Palestinian cause, a Saudi official nevertheless told him: “We view Israel as a fact on the ground. Israel is there and has been there for decades. We simply cannot claim that it does not exist.”
Zahran emphasized that Saudi Arabia is a source of stability that has lectured both Jordan’s king and Abu Mazen about the fact that a Third Intifada does not serve Palestinian interests: “An Intifada can only hurt our Palestinian brothers and we call for common sense.” Zahran is not the only figure in the Arab world that has a positive view regarding the prospects for improved Saudi-Israeli relations. Jordanian opposition figure Mohammad Btaibet stressed: “Saudi Arabia is now the only sane partner in the Middle East who is stable and has the military might to crack down on the terrorists. Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman is very smart and a pragmatic man. I believe he would not mind relations with Israel as long as it serves the Palestinian people and advances their interests. We in Jordan would welcome such a move from our Saudi brothers.”
Naseem Al-Ghweewan, Jordan’s Shadow Secretary of Homeland Security, added: “I believe the Saudis could make a much better partner than Jordan when it comes to administering Al Aqsa. The Saudis would not hire more than 100 guards to provoke trouble like Jordan’s king just did and in fact, if there is any future for freedom of worship in Al Aqsa, this can only happen in coordination with the Saudis, not the Hashemite Dynasty. If you ask me, I would call Saudi’s king not only the Custodian of the Two Shrines (Mecca and Medina) but also the Custodian of Al Aqsa.”
These statements uttered by prominent individuals in the Jordanian opposition that highlight that Saudi Arabia is presently a force of moderation in the Middle East are backed up by articles recently published in the Saudi governmental daily Al Jazirah that was translated into English by MEMRI. While the Palestinian media almost uniformly praises suicide bombings and glorifies suicide bombers, a recent series of articles published in the Saudi daily Al Jazirah by Mohammed Aal Al Sheikh stressed that the Quran explicitly forbids suicide bombings and since it is a state controlled media outlet, it means that it represents the position of the present Saudi government: “Salafi clerics who do not support the Muslim Brotherhood insist that suicide is forbidden by religious law and therefore ‘suicide operations,’ for whatever reason, are forbidden. Anyone who carries them out is not only not a martyr, but is destined for Hell.”
“Among these prominent ‘pure Salafi’ sheikhs who are not Muslim Brotherhood supporters and who ban suicide operations and see them as a crime are Saudi Grand Mufti Sheikh ‘Abd Al-‘Aziz bin Baz [d. 1999], prominent Saudi Sheikh Muhammad bin ‘Uthaymin [d. 2001], and the authoritative Saudi Salafi Sheikh of our time, Saleh Al-Fawzan,” Al Sheikh emphasized. “These three distinguished Salafis agree unanimously that suicide is forbidden, based on Allah’s statements in Koran 4:29: ‘And do not kill yourselves. Surely, Allah is Most Merciful to you.’ Therefore, when both Muslim Brotherhood and Muslim Brotherhood-supporting clerics permit suicide, they are going against an explicit and indisputable Koranic text; in addition, they are violating an ironclad principle of Islamic religious scholarship, according to which it is forbidden to issue an independent religious ruling regarding an issue on which there is an explicit text in the Koran or the Hadith.” He called on Muslim religious leaders to take strong action to halt the spread of suicide bombings.
According to a report in the New Eastern Outlook, Saudi Arabia as a leading force in the Muslim world won’t initiate diplomatic relations with Israel in the absence of a peace agreement with the Palestinians. However, due to both countries opposition to ISIS, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Iran, there can be unofficial contacts, trade relations remain a strong possibility, and there have been reports about meetings between the two countries representatives. Some claim that the Saudis are willing to provide support should Israel ever decide to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities. Prince Talal even went as far as calling upon the peoples of the Middle East to stop hating the Jewish people. In August 2014, Saudi Prince Saud Al Faisal declared at the Assembly of Islamic Scholars in Jeddah: “We must reject planting hatred towards Israel and we should normalize relations with the Jewish state.”
Agencies
