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Former Saudi deputy minister: ‘Saudi Arabia is our No. 1, No. 2 and No. 10 cause, the Palestinians come later’

The Palestinians have made “catastrophic mistakes” and must stop viewing Saudi Arabia as a mere faucet, says former Saudi public diplomacy minister Saud al-Kateb.

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, and members of his delegation, Tuesday, March 14, 2017, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. Photo by Shealah Craighead/White House.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, and members of his delegation, Tuesday, March 14, 2017, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. Photo by Shealah Craighead/White House.

Saudi Arabia’s former deputy minister for public diplomacy Saud al-Kateb said last week that the Palestinians had made “catastrophic mistakes” with regard to countries such as Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia, and must stop treating the kingdom as a faucet.

Speaking with Diwan Al-Mullah Online TV on Sept. 17, Saud al-Kateb recounted how he would donate his pocket money to the Palestinian cause as a child, and said that while he does not expect gratitude from the Palestinians for all the Saudis have done for them, he does expect the kingdom not to be cursed by them.

Saudi Arabia, he said, must first look out for its own interests and only then consider the Palestinian cause.

“Saudi Arabia is our No. 1 cause. It is also our No. 2 cause and our No. 10 cause. Then comes the Palestinian cause,” he said.

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