First Saudi ambassador to Palestine welcomed by Palestinian Authority

This is the first visit by a Saudi official to the Palestinian territory since Israel occupied West Bank, Gaza in 1967.

The first Saudi ambassador to Palestine, Nayef al-Sudairi, is about to present his credentials to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

Al-Sudairi and his accompanying delegation arrived in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday through the Karama crossing from Jordan on a two-day official visit that will end on Wednesday.

He is scheduled to meet with Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki as well as Abbas and Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh.

On Monday, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates welcomed the visit of the Saudi ambassador, considering it “a historic milestone for developing fraternal relations between the two sister countries”.

“We welcome his excellency the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the State of Palestine, who will present his official credentials,” PLO Secretary-General Hussein al-Sheikh said, according to Palestinian news agency WAFA.

Presenting credentials

Last August, al-Sudairi, who is Saudi Arabia’s current ambassador to Jordan, was appointed non-resident envoy to Palestine and consul general in Jerusalem.

A copy of his credentials was presented on August 12 to Majdi Al-Khalidi, diplomatic adviser to the Palestinian president, at a ceremony at the Embassy of Palestine in Amman, Jordan, in the presence of Atallah Khairi, ambassador of Palestine to Jordan.

His credentials identified al-Sudairi as “Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz to the State of Palestine, and Consul General of the Kingdom in Jerusalem”, according to WAFA.

At the time, Israel rejected the notion of establishing a Saudi consulate in Jerusalem, with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen saying al-Sudairi could meet PA representatives in Jerusalem but would have no fixed presence.

Israel claims Jerusalem as its own capital, a status recognised by the United States under then-President Donald Trump in 2017 but not by the international community.

Israeli authorities prohibit any Palestinian diplomatic activity in the city.

The first Saudi ambassador to Palestine

Al-Sudairi will be Saudi Arabia’s first ambassador to Palestine.

The appointment of the Saudi ambassador comes amid reports that the Gulf kingdom is mulling official diplomatic relations with Israel in response to US pressure.

However, according to US, Israeli, and Saudi officials, such a deal is still a long way off because of a number of complex concerns, such as Saudi nuclear power development and Israeli operations in the occupied West Bank.

Riyadh has repeatedly stated that it will adhere to the Arab League’s position of not having relations with Israel until the Palestinian crisis is resolved.

Source

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Al Jazeera and news agencies