Report claims Saudi Crown Prince has no personal concern for 'Palestinian issue'
Saudi denies allegation
Riyadh: US magazine The Atlantic has reported that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman expressed a lack of personal concern for the "Palestinian issue" during a conversation with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in January. The two leaders reportedly discussed the possibility of normalising relations with Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
According to the report, Blinken asked whether Saudi Arabia would tolerate periodic Israeli reentries into Gaza as part of a potential normalisation agreement. The crown prince purportedly responded, "They can come back in six months, a year, but not on the back end of my signing something like this."
He added, “Seventy percent of my population is younger than me. For most of them, they never really knew much about the Palestinian issue. And so they’re being introduced to it for the first time through this conflict. It’s a huge problem. Do I care personally about the Palestinian issue? I don’t, but my people do, so I need to make sure this is meaningful.”
A Saudi official, however, has described this account of the conversation as “incorrect.”
Despite the new reported comments, Mohammed bin Salman has in the past publicly stated that Saudi Arabia will not normalise relations with Israel without the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
"The Kingdom will not cease its diligent efforts to establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital," he said at a recent annual address before the Shura Council in Riyadh.
"We confirm that Saudi Arabia will not establish diplomatic relations with Israel until that goal is achieved.”
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Former India hockey coach Michael Nobbs dies
Melbourne (PTI): Former Australian hockey player Michael Nobbs, who coached the Indian men's team at the 2012 London Olympics, has died after a prolonged illness.
He was 72 years old and is survived by his wife Lee Capes, a former Australian women's international and daughter Kaitlin, who is a current Hockeyroos star.
"Hockey Australia extends its deepest condolences to Michael’s family, friends, former teammates, players and all those whose lives and careers were shaped by his contribution to hockey. He will be remembered as a proud Kookaburra, a respected professional, and a servant of the sport," Hockey Australia said in a statement.
Nobbs represented Australia as a defender, playing across the half-back line and at fullback, and was renowned for his reliability, fitness and professionalism. He earned 76 international caps for Australia between 1979 and 1985, scoring one goal, and was a member of one of the strongest eras in Australian men’s hockey, said Hockey Australia on its website in its tribute.
Nobbs was an integral part of the Australian teams that competed at the 1981 Hockey World Cup in Bombay and the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
While part of a generation widely regarded as one of Australia’s finest, he consistently held his place through hard work, discipline and trust earned from teammates and coaches, Hockey Australia wrote.
Nobbs took over the coaching of the Indian men's team in 2011 after it had failed to qualify for the Beijing Games in 2008. While India were brilliant in the qualifiers, the team finished last at the London extravaganza which also expedited the Australian coach's sacking.
Apart from India, Nobbs also coached Japan.
