Saudi crown prince demands Israel not attack Iran

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman yesterday demanded Israel respect Iran’s sovereignty and refrain from attacking its territory, highlighting the friendly relations between Riyadh and Tehran.

Speaking at the Joint Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit in Riyadh, Bin Salman stressed that the international community must force Israel to “respect the sovereignty of the sisterly Islamic Republic of Iran and not attack its territory.”

Saudi Arabia and Iran have maintained high-level contact as part of efforts to contain Israel’s war on Gaza.

That diplomatic outreach led to the first phone call between Bin Salman and then-Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, just five days after the war broke out.

In October, Saudi Arabia announced it had conducted naval exercises with Iran and other countries in the Gulf of Oman.

Bin Salman and current Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian spoke on the phone on Sunday ahead of yesterday’s summit.

READ: Saudi armed forces general chief of staff to hold talks in Iran