'Hallucination' or realpolitik? Netanyahu's long shot at Israel-Saudi ...

TEL AVIV — As bizarre as it may sound, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to talk about normalizing Israel’s relations with Saudi Arabia, telling his people that he is doing all he can to make it happen. 

According to the grand plan he laid out for his associates, the fighting in Gaza will continue until Israel achieves victory. In parallel, tensions with Hezbollah will be resolved, perhaps requiring more intense fighting lasting several weeks but without being dragged into an all-out war with its backer, Iran. These outcomes, he believes, will pave the way for a US-sponsored deal with Saudi Arabia, the Palestinians and Lebanon. With this winning hand, Netanyahu then foresees holding elections.

‘Hallucination’ that US is talking to him

How he plans to establish official relations with Saudi Arabia without agreeing to its threshold condition of progress in negotiations with the Palestinians is anyone’s guess. At a news conference on Thursday, Netanyahu relayed to American officials his opposition to a Palestinian state in the aftermath of the Gaza war.