Documents show that Hamas's attacks in 2023 aimed to undermine the normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

On May 18, the supreme leader of Hamas decided to launch an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, with the aim of sabotaging peace talks between Israel and Saudi Arabia. The Israeli military said they found a transcript of a high-level Hamas meeting in a tunnel in the Gaza Strip. Days before the attack, Hamas's Gaza chief, Yahya Sinwar, told other militants that "extraordinary action" was needed to sabotage talks to normalize [Israeli-Saudi relations], which he said could marginalize the Palestinian cause, the documents show. The plan succeeded, but at a terrible cost. The Hamas attack sparked an Israeli military operation. Gaza health authorities say Israeli attacks have killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, leaving the area in ruins. This has provoked anger across the Arab world and beyond, at least for now, hindering progress in normalizing relations between the two countries. Mr. Trump, who visited Riyadh on Tuesday, also acknowledged this, calling for Saudi Arabia to have relations with Israel, but he said, "You guys will decide for yourselves when the time is right." ”