Politics

‘Betting on a losing horse,’ says Iran on Saudi-Israel possible détente

Tehran, Oct 3 (EFE) Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, said on Tuesday that countries seeking to normalize ties with Israel were “betting on a losing horse,” alluding to the possible rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and the Jewish state.

Addressing a group of people to commemorate the birthday of Prophet Mohammed, Khamenei said the situation that Israel was going through “does not encourage any party to get close to it,” and as such, normalizing ties with the Jewish state would be detrimental to any country “that wishes to do so.”

“They are making a mistake. As the Europeans say, they are betting on a losing horse,” he told the gathering in Tehran.

Khamenei said Israel’s days were “numbered” because it was “full of hatred” against Iran and other Muslim countries such as Egypt, Iraq, and Syria.

He said the Palestinian movement was “more lively and ready today than ever in the past decades.”

The supreme leader cited his predecessor and the founder of the Islamic republic, Imam Khomeini, who had described “Israel as a cancer.”

“This cancer will be eradicated at the hands of the Palestinian people and the resistance forces in the entire region,” he said.

Israel and Saudi Arabia are getting closer to signing an agreement to establish diplomatic relations, brokered by the United States, that would see Riyadh renounce its historic demand for a Palestinian state.

The negotiations, mediated by the US, have advanced in recent months and were even addressed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman during his speech to the United Nations.

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisí Sunday expressed regret over the possible normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, affirming that the liberation of Jerusalem is the “most important” issue in the Muslim world.

“The way to deal with the enemy is not compromise and surrender, but it is resilience and resistance that force the [regime] to retreat,” Raisi said.

Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed in March with Chinese mediation to normalize their diplomatic relations. EFE

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