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Saudi Crown prince says Israel 'potential ally'

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Agence France-Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Picture taken June 23, 2020 shows a few worshippers performing al-Fajr prayer at the Kaaba, Islam" s="" holiest="" at="" the="" Grand="" Mosque="" complex="" in="" Saudi="" holy="" city="" of="" Mecca.="" Agence="" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/afp/10/02/20200623-al-fajr-prayer-kaaba-afp.jpg"/><figcaption>Picture taken June 23, 2020 shows a few worshippers performing al-Fajr prayer at the Kaaba, Islam&#x27;s holiest shrine, at the Grand Mosque complex in Saudi Arabia&#x27;s holy city of Mecca. <em>Agence France-Presse</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called Israel a &quot;potential ally&quot; and said in a wide-ranging interview published on Thursday that he wants to &quot;work it out&quot; with Iran </p><p>The de facto leader, 36, also called the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi &quot;a huge mistake&quot; for which he was unfairly blamed, and revealed a penchant for hit TV series &quot;Game of Thrones&quot;.</p><p>&quot;For us, we hope that the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians is solved,&quot; the prince told The Atlantic, according to a transcript issued by the official Saudi Press Agency.</p><p>&quot;We don&#x27;t look at Israel as an enemy, we look to them as a potential ally, with many interests that we can pursue together... But we have to solve some issues before we get to that.&quot;</p><p>Saudi Arabia does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, but in 2020 Gulf allies Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates normalized ties with the Jewish state.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/12/30/21/saudi-king-urges-iran-to-end-negative-behavior">Saudi king urges Iran to end &#x27;negative&#x27; behavior</a></li></ul><p>The normalization deals under the US-brokered Abraham Accords angered the Palestinians, who condemned them as a &quot;stab in the back&quot;.</p><p>Saudi relations with Israel&#x27;s arch-foe Iran, blamed by Gulf states for creating chaos in the region, have at the same time showed signs of improvement with several rounds of talks hosted by Iraq. </p><p>&quot;They are neighbors. Neighbors forever. We cannot get rid of them, and they can&#x27;t get rid of us,&quot; the prince said of Iran.</p><p>&quot;So it&#x27;s better for both of us to work it out and to look for ways in which we can coexist,&quot; the transcript said he told the US monthly publication. </p><p>&quot;Hopefully, we can reach a position that&#x27;s good for both countries and is going to create a brighter future for this country and Iran,&quot; he added.</p><p>https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/12/30/21/saudi-king-urges-iran-to-end-negative-behavior</p><p>Saudi Arabia has repeatedly said it would stick to the decades-old Arab League position of not establishing official ties with Israel until the conflict with the Palestinians is resolved. </p><p>Prince Mohammed has, however, seemed more open than his father, King Salman, towards Israel, allowing its commercial aircraft to pass through Saudi air space.</p><div><strong>HOUSE OF CARDS</strong></div><p>The ultra-conservative kingdom has undergone marked social change under Prince Mohammed, with women allowed to drive for the first time in 2018.</p><p>However, Khashoggi&#x27;s murder that year by a hit squad in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul led to global revulsion and pointed questions for the young prince.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/10/25/21/ex-spy-claims-saudi-prince-sent-death-squad-to-kill-him">Ex-spy claims Saudi prince sent death squad to kill him</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/06/19/19/has-the-sacrificial-lamb-arrived-un-cites-new-recordings-in-khashoggi-murder">Has &#x27;the sacrificial lamb&#x27; arrived?: UN cites new recordings in Khashoggi murder</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/focus/10/23/18/a-vicious-murder-turkish-president-reveals-how-khashoggi-died">&#x27;A vicious murder&#x27;: Turkish president reveals how Khashoggi died</a></li></ul><p>&quot;Why would I do it?&quot; he asked, saying that accusations that he ordered the killing &quot;hurt me a lot&quot;.</p><p>&quot;What happened was painful... that was a huge failure in the system,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;In any case, if that&#x27;s the way we did things, Khashoggi would not even be among the top 1,000 people on the list,&quot; added the prince.</p><p>He also defended a purge launched in 2017 that saw hundreds of Saudi royals and business elite imprisoned in Riyadh&#x27;s palatial Ritz-Carlton hotel.</p><p>&quot;That was a strong signal,&quot; said Prince Mohammed.</p><p>&quot;I believe (by) 2019 to 2020, they understood even if you steal $100, you&#x27;re going to pay for it. And a lot of people made that mistake,&quot; he added.</p><p>Asked whether criticism could land his interviewer in the Ritz-Carlton, the crown prince replied: &quot;Well, at least it&#x27;s a five-star hotel.&quot;</p><p>In the rare interview with foreign media, the crown prince also gave an insight into his personal leisure habits, including his preferred TV: sci-fi series &quot;Foundation&quot; and HBO&#x27;s &quot;Game of Thrones&quot;.</p><p>&quot;When I watch movies or series I try to see something outside my world. For example, &#x27;House of Cards&#x27; is not good for me,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;&#x27;Foundation&#x27;, it&#x27;s a new series. It&#x27;s unbelievable. Amazing. &#x27;Game of Thrones&#x27;, for example. It&#x27;s great,&quot; added the prince.</p><p>Iran/dm/th/it</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1848836" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><div> </div>