Watan-In a significant contradiction to what he mentioned about it in October last year and his extensive attack on it, attempting to demonize it, former Saudi intelligence chief Prince Turki Al-Faisal acknowledged, in a televised interview, the role of the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas in awakening the world through the “Flood of Al-Aqsa” operation and bringing the Palestinian cause back to the attention of all countries, “humiliating the Israeli occupation forces and erasing the image that it is an invincible power.”
Prince Turki Al-Faisal said in televised statements to the Saudi channel “Al-Akhbariya”: “In our recent days, for the past two or three months, the Palestinian cause has become the axis around which the general interest of the world revolves, not only the interest of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”
The former Saudi official added that “what Hamas has done in its attack on Israel and the way it managed to invade the strong fortress that Israel placed around the Gaza Strip has had very significant repercussions.
فيديو | الأمير تركي الفيصل: الأحداث الأخيرة حطمت صورة إسرائيل كـ “قوة منيعة” إقليميا#المملكة_في_2023#الإخبارية pic.twitter.com/ePDOeVamIq
— قناة الإخبارية (@alekhbariyatv) December 31, 2023
It is worth mentioning that Prince Turki Al-Faisal had previously equated, in statements in October last year, between the victim and the executioner, blaming both Hamas and Israel for what is happening in Gaza. Qatar did not escape his hostile statements either, as he also criticized Doha for hosting the spokesperson for Hamas.
At that time, the Saudi prince condemned, during his speech at the Baker Institute, “the transfer of Qatari funds to Hamas, despite calling it a terrorist organization,” according to his words.
Al-Faisal mentioned at that time that he does not support the military option in Palestine and prefers civil disobedience, reiterating his condemnation of Hamas and holding it responsible for what is happening in Gaza, claiming that it gave Israel the opportunity to destroy the besieged Palestinian territory.
Turki Al-Faisal acknowledges the credit for the Al-Aqsa Flood operation.
And among the repercussions that Turki Al-Faisal mentioned in his statement, ‘Above all, shattering the image that many people around the world had that Israel is the impervious obstacle against any force that could compete with it, trade with it, or challenge it in the region.’
The former Saudi intelligence chief pointed out that the “Al-Aqsa Flood” operation carried out by the Palestinian resistance played a role in keeping the “Palestinian cause alive,” and everyone realized that it “has not died, and Palestine is not forgotten by the Arabs or even by the Palestinians.”
However, Al-Faisal described the Al-Aqsa Flood operation as an incident, avoiding any direct praise for the resistance, saying, “The incident that occurred three months ago awakened the world not only to the existence of the Palestinian cause but also to the oppression and injustice.”
He added that what happened in Gaza awakened the world to “the oppression practiced against this people by an occupier resembling the colonial occupations of the 19th century that European countries practiced in various parts of the world.”
فيديو | الأمير تركي الفيصل: دعم المملكة للقضية الفلسطينية لن يتبدل سواء في 2023 أو 2024 #المملكة_في_2023#الإخبارية pic.twitter.com/7cOgc2Jxwa
— قناة الإخبارية (@alekhbariyatv) December 31, 2023
In other statements about the Saudi stance on Gaza
Among the highlights of Turki Al-Faisal’s interview with the Saudi channel “Al-Akhbariya” regarding Riyadh’s stance on what is happening in Gaza:
- The Saudi stance will not change in supporting the Palestinian cause amid the events in Gaza.
- Riyadh’s position emphasizes that the solution must begin with the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state with its capital in East Jerusalem and enjoying all the characteristics of a state.
- The Kingdom is not concerned with factional disputes; it is concerned with the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian people.
Turki Al-Faisal’s reversal on his previous statements and his praise for the Al-Aqsa Flood operation sparked widespread debate among activists who questioned the reason for this sudden change in his position.
Some pointed out that personal statements, such as those of Turki Al-Faisal, do not happen spontaneously and that there is more to them than meets the eye. They suggested that these statements could be indicative of the Saudi stance and its orientations, according to their interpretation.
Turki Al-Faisal had previously criticized both Hamas and Qatar
As the former director of Saudi intelligence, he condemned Qatar’s hosting of the Hamas spokesperson. He stated that he condemns the Palestinian movement for sabotaging Saudi Arabia’s attempt to reach a peaceful solution, aligning his remarks with the actual policy of Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Crown Prince had been leading a normalization project with Israel that was allegedly disrupted by the events of “Al-Aqsa Flood.”
Turki Al-Faisal’s statements in October last year, where he also criticized Qatar for hosting the Hamas spokesperson, were made during a television interview on the sidelines of a seminar at the Baker Institute for Public Policy, marking the fiftieth anniversary of the oil embargo.
These remarks coincided with Western reports confirming that the “Al-Aqsa Flood” operation had disrupted the Saudi-Israeli normalization project, which had been on the verge of being publicly revealed after years of clandestine work.