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Saudi Arabia's Mohammad bin Salman suggests Jews have a right to their own land

The 32-year-old has overseen reforms in the kingdom since becoming crown prince last year

April 3, 2018 14:34
The Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud visited the United Nations at the end of March
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Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman generated anticipation of closer ties with Israel this week by suggesting he believes the Jewish people have a right to their own land.

In an interview with US magazine The Atlantic, he said his country “doesn’t have a problem with Jews”, pointing to the Prophet Muhammad’s marriage to a Jewish woman.

When asked whether he believed the Jewish people had a right to a nation-state in at least part of their ancestral homeland, the crown prince said: “I believe that each people, anywhere, has a right to live in their peaceful nation. I believe the Palestinians and the Israelis have the right to have their own land.”

He continued: “We have religious concerns about the fate of the holy mosque in Jerusalem and about the rights of the Palestinian people. This is what we have. We don’t have any objection against any other people.”