Saudi Prince Turki al-Faisal condemns both Hamas and Israel, says 'I prefer India's civil disobedience..'

Saudi Prince Turki al-Faisal, the former Ambassador of Saudi Arabia, heavily criticised both Hamas and Israel for the ongoing conflict in the Middle East that has claimed thousands of lives, remarking that he prefers India's civil disobedience movement, according to several reports.

In his speech at Rice University in Houston, Prince Faisal said that "there were no heroes, only victims" in the war. He condemned Hamas for going against the Islamic traditions of not harming innocent civilians, BBC reported.

The Saudi Prince balanced his condemnation of Hamas with similar rhetoric for Israel, accusing it of "indiscriminate bombing of innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza" and the "indiscriminate arrest of Palestinian children, women and men in the West Bank".

According to social media reports, Faisal also condemned Hamas for providing the Israeli government with a higher moral basis and disrupting Saudi Arabia's attempt for a peaceful solution to the Palestinian issue. He similarly lashed out against Israel for "stealing" Palestinian land, destroying Palestinian homes and transferring Qatari money to Hamas.

The Saudi prince also condemned Western politicians for "shedding



tears when Israelis kill Palestinians, but refuse to express even sorrow when Israelis kill Palestinians". He took issue with the US media's use of the phrase "unprovoked attack" in reference to the 7 October raid, saying: "What more provocation is required.. than what Israel has done to the Palestinian people for three-quarters of a century?"

In his sharp and careful remarks on the Israel-Hamas war, the Saudi Prince mentioned the example of India's independence movement in the context of the Palestinian issue, while saying that all occupied people possess the right to resist their occupation.

Instead of a military solution in Palestine, Faisal said that he preferred "civil insurrection and disobedience" used to bring down the British Empire in India and the Soviet Empire in eastern Europe. He also remarked that "two wrongs don't make a right".

However, according to some reports, Faisal mentioned that the normalisation deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel was still on the table.

According to BBC, his powerful remarks mark the clearest indicator yet of the Saudi leadership's thinking on the situation. This is also the first time a Saudi Prince has openly condemned the Hamas group.