Former Saudi intelligence chief Prince Turki al-Faisal on Wednesday ripped US President Donald Trump’s proposal for Gazans to relocate to other countries while the United States assumes control and rehabilitates the Gaza Strip.
Speaking to CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in an interview, Prince Turki said Trump's proposal will only mean "more conflict and more bloodshed," and described it as “ethnic cleansing”.
“It is a fantasy to think that ethnic cleansing in the 21st century can be condoned by a world community that stays on its behinds and does not respond to that. The problem in Palestine is not the Palestinians. It is the Israeli occupation,” the Saudi official charged.
“And this has been clear and understood by everybody. Hence, you have United Nations resolutions calling for the quid pro quo of land for peace from 1967 until now,” he continued. “The Arab Peace Initiative, of course, is based on that and offered Israel not only diplomatic relations, but all of the things that Israel wanted from trade, from normalization, etc., in return for the establishment of a Palestinian state with its capital in East Jerusalem. All of these things were American policy until this latest wording that Mr. Trump has chosen to use in claiming that he wants to do better things, when actually it is going to turn things into more conflict and more bloodshed.”
He further claimed that Trump’s plan “is totally based on the Israeli position of ethnic cleansing” and went on to criticize former Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, describing him as “the ultimate ethnic cleanser in Palestine. He's been saying this for the last two and a half years since he joined the government. And now he's justifying what he said by the words of the American president. That is unacceptable.”
Asked what he thinks the next step should be, Prince Turki replied, “I would expect that there will be collective action on the part not only of the Arab, but Muslim world as well, along with the Europeans and other countries that believe in the two-state solution to take up the matter and where else but go to the United Nations. And this is the only arena where things like that can be discussed. Unfortunately, with the American veto [at the Security Council], I cannot expect that there will be much success in passing any resolutions. But nonetheless, it will show that the world is opposed to this mad ethnic cleansing plan that the American president has proposed.”
Asked whether Saudi Arabia fears a backlash from the White House if it does not accept Trump’s plan, he replied, “We'll have to wait and see. And one of [Trump’s] first statements, if you remember, he mentioned that Saudi Arabia were willing to invest something like $500 billion in the United States. And he recalled that the first country he visited in his first term was in Saudi Arabia. So if he does come here, I'm sure he will get an earful from the leadership here about not just the unwisdom of what he is proposing, but the downright unfairness and injustice that is really signified and totally placed in this proposal of ethnic cleansing from not only Gaza, but what is happening in the West Bank.”
Trump's plan has been widely praised in Israel and condemned by many Arab countries, including Egypt and Jordan, two countries that Trump has insisted should be accepting Gazans.
As for relations with Israel, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday reaffirmed its stance that normalization with Israel is conditioned on the establishment of a Palestinian state.
The comment came after President Donald Trump replied “no” when asked by Arutz Sheva-Israel National News, during a press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whether the Saudis are expecting a Palestinian state as a condition for normalization with Israel.
Saudi Arabia has been more critical of Israel in recent months, after the two countries appeared to be on track towards normalization before Hamas’ attack against Israel on October 7, 2023. After the massacre, Saudi Arabia put the US-backed plans to normalize ties with Israel on ice.
In September, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman emphasized that an "independent Palestinian state" was essential for normalization. In subsequent comments, he characterized Israel's military operation in Gaza as "genocide".
In an interview last month, then-US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that he believes there is a path towards normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia, but added that the Saudis have not changed their stance that such a path must include a Palestinian state.