Saudi media, officials revert to familiar positions on Israel as regional tensions heat up—but that doesn’t mean a deal is dead in the water

Mohammed bin Salman (Credit: EVELYN HOCKSTEIN—POOL/AFP/Getty Images)

Saudi media and official statements have reverted to familiar stances on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as the confrontation between Hamas and Israel escalated into a declaration of war, with hundreds of casualties on both sides, in the wake of the Palestinian armed group’s attacks on civilians in southern Israel and the subsequent targeting of the Gaza Strip by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

The message from Saudi officialdom and the media that carefully toes its line could be summarized in four words: “I told you so.”