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Home Posts The Saudi Media Speaks with Two Voices – Against Israel and Against Hamas

The Saudi Media Speaks with Two Voices – Against Israel and Against Hamas
Ilan Zalayat
26 October, 2023
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The attack on Israel caught Saudi Arabia at an awkward time, when it is closer than ever to normalization with Israel. The Saudis fear that Hamas's achievement will strengthen the popularity of their rivals in the region – Iran, which supports Hamas, and the Muslim Brotherhood, with which is identified with the terrorist organization. In response, the Saudi-controlled media, which are popular throughout the Arab world, speak with two voices: both against Hamas and Iran, and against Israel.

The commentaries advise against excitement by Hamas's initial surprise, since in the end Israel is stronger, and the organization dragged Gaza into a catastrophic event. According to them, it was Iran that pushed Hamas to launch an attack in order to thwart the Israeli-Saudi normalization agreement that could have improved the lives of the Palestinians. When senior Hamas official Khaled Mashal was interviewed by the al-Arabiya network, he was surprised to find the presenter hurling these accusations at him, and even comparing between Hamas and ISIS in light of the organization's harm to civilians. A well-known Saudi publicist went even further, and called on Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to redeem Gaza and turn himself in instead of fighting to the last drop of Palestinian blood.

At the same time, the Saudi commentators do not lack for criticism of Israel: according to them, the attack is proof that Netanyahu and the Israeli right were wrong in assuming that the Palestinian issue would be forgotten, and that it is possible to continue the occupation and abandon the two-state solution, since that leaves the Palestinians no choice except war. An article in a-Sharq al-Awsat stated that Israel and Iran are in a “marriage of convenience,” as both want to destroy the Palestinian struggle, albeit for different reasons. The writer was comforted by the fact that the war may lead to the fall of extremist forces, in Israel and among the Palestinians.

Through this rhetoric, Saudi Arabia tries to preserve its image as an element that cares about the Palestinians – unlike Iran, which sheds their blood with the unlikely promise of destroying Israel. The Saudis clarify that Hamas does not represent the Palestinians, and present themselves as the moderate stabilizing element in the region.

Topics: Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States, Perceptions about Jews and Israel in the Arab-Muslim World and Their Impact on the West, Swords of Iron War
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  • Research

    • Topics
      • Israel and the Global Powers
      • Israel-United States Relations
      • Glazer Israel-China Policy Center
      • Russia
      • Europe
      • Iran and the Shi'ite Axis
      • Iran
      • Lebanon and Hezbollah
      • Syria
      • Yemen and the Houthi Movement
      • Iraq and the Iraqi Shiite Militias
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      • Peace Agreements and Normalization in the Middle East
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      • Jordan
      • Israel’s National Security Policy
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