Saudi writer Abdulhameed Al-Ghobain said in a May 10, 2020 interview on BBC Arabic TV (United Kingdom) that the Saudi public is well-informed today, and that it no longer cares about the Palestinian cause or about Arab interests.
Saying that the Palestinians “have lost,” Al-Ghobain explained that Saudis care about their national, strategic and economic interests, and that Saudi Arabia can benefit from establishing relations with Israel because of how advanced Israel is. He added that relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia have gone “beyond normalization” and are now cordial.
The following are excerpts from the interview:
Abdulhameed Al-Ghobain: “I am talking about public opinion. Today, the public is informed. There is a deluge [of opinions] against the Palestinian cause. It is no longer just public support for normalization and building ties with Israel. [Our] public has turned against the Palestinians in general. Unfortunately, the Palestinians have lost. The Palestinians have not contributed anything. We can say that they are emotional people whose behavior is governed by their feelings.”
[...]
“If you came to Saudi Arabia and conducted a survey–even among middle school and high school students–they will tell you that not only are they indifferent to the Palestinian cause, but the people in Saudi Arabia no longer care about Arabs as a whole.”
[...]
“These opinions have been voiced very loudly in Saudi Arabia for the past two years. At first, it was said quietly, but now this voice is very loud. People say out in the open that they do not care about the Palestinian cause and about the Arabs in general, and that we must steer our relations in keeping with our interests. It is in our strategic interest, and in keeping with our future economic interests, to maintain real relations with Israel. Israel is an advanced country and we can benefit from it. [When] Turkey established relations with Israel, it experienced great progress.”
[...]
“The Arab League issues statements that are worthless. We should deal with reality. The relations [with Israel] have gone beyond normalization. The relations have become warm. It is no longer just about normalization. The relations have reached a very warm level.”
