Saudi delegation visits Palestinian territories as Israel and Saudi Arabia eye normalization
By JULIA FRANKEL
Associated Press
RAMALLAH (AP) — The newly appointed Saudi ambassador to the Palestinian Authority is visiting the Israeli-occupied West Bank for the first time. The visit by Nayef al-Sudairi on Tuesday is widely seen as an attempt by the kingdom to address the key sticking point in the Saudi-Israeli normalization deal. The Saudi government has said it would only normalize ties with Israel if there is major progress toward the creation of a Palestinian state. A statement from the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said al-Sudairi would spend two days in Palestinian territories focused on strengthening ties between the two countries. He plans to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas other senior Palestinian officials.