Why Israel advocates going easy on Khashoggi’s killers

by Erin Dunne

 | November 13, 2018 08:08 AM

When dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared, murdered in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, the world was outraged. To kill a prominent critic in a violent, preplanned attack against international laws and norms under diplomatic cover in a foreign country was not just evil; it was also the equivalent of Saudi Arabia giving the middle finger to allies who have been bending over backward to support it. The regime's subsequent lies only make matters worse.

With evidence increasingly showing that the order for Khashoggi’s death came from the highest levels of the Saudi regime, Israel came to the defense of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

On Nov. 4, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explained his position: “What happened in the Istanbul consulate was horrendous and it should be duly dealt with.” He went on, adding, “Yet at the same time, I say that it is very important for the stability of the world, of the region and of the world, that Saudi Arabia remain stable.”

Earlier, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Ron Dermer noted, “We should not allow an action like that to go unanswered, but we also have to be careful about not throwing away a relationship that has strategic value.”

For Israel, that’s a pretty clear position: As long as Saudi Arabia is useful, let’s not be too harsh.

So, what exactly is Israel looking for in the kingdom that doesn’t even acknowledge its right to exist?

The short answer is power.

Israel defends the crown prince because Netanyahu needs Saudi support for his goals of creating a regional alliance against Iran — a classic case of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" — and to ensure Saudi pressure on Palestinians to agree to a peace plan with Israel, presided over by President Trump.

For this plan to work, Netanyahu has bet on bin Salman remaining at the helm of Saudi Arabia. To destabilize the young leader because of an international outrage over a graphic account of an extrajudicial killing doesn’t fit into the plan.

A recent example of this unspoken relationship with Saudi Arabia is the Saudi decision to deny visas to Palestinians using refugee or temporary travel documents to perform the pilgrimages of Hajj and Umrah. As a Jordanian source told the Middle East Eye, the Saudi move is part of an agreement with Israel to end “Palestinian identity and the right to return for refugees.”

The goal is for Jordan, and likely Lebanon, to naturalize Palestinian refugees as citizens, eliminating the category of refugees. That would be a boon for Israel, putting an end to troublesome demands of Palestinian refugees to return to the land that is now part of the Jewish state.

For Israel, the path forward is pretty clear: overlook the unpleasantness of Khashoggi’s death and push the Trump administration to follow suit.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/why-israel-advocates-going-easy-on-khashoggis-killers