Saudi Arabia could 'recognize' Israel if Palestine state created

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said the kingdom could recognize Israel if a comprehensive agreement were reached that included statehood for the Palestinians.

"We agree that regional peace includes peace for Israel, but that could only happen through peace for the Palestinians through a Palestinian state," Prince Faisal bin Farhan told a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Asked if Saudi Arabia would then recognize Israel as part of a wider political agreement, he said: "Certainly."

Prince Faisal said securing regional peace through the creation of a Palestinian state was "something we have been indeed working on with the U.S. administration, and it is more relevant in the context of Gaza."

Hamas leader added to EU sanctions list

Also on Tuesday, European Union member states added Yahya Sinwar, the political leader of Hamas, to their sanctions list in response to the group's surprise attack on Israel last October.

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He is now subject to the freezing of his funds and other financial assets in EU member states, while EU operators are prohibited to make funds and economic resources available to him.

Born in the Khan Younis refugee camp, Sinwar, 61, was elected as Hamas' leader in Gaza in 2017 and was one of 1,027 Palestinians released from Israeli prisons in a swap for a single Israeli soldier held in Gaza in 2011.

Iran strike triggers row with Iraq

An Iranian missile strike on targets in northern Iraq set off a row between the neighboring allies, with Baghdad recalling its ambassador in protest and Tehran insisting the attack was intended to deter threats from Israeli spies.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards hit what they called an Israeli espionage center in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, Iranian media reported late on Monday, while the elite force said they also struck in Syria against the Islamic State.

The strike appeared likely to deepen worries about worsening instability across the Middle East since the war between Israel and Hamas started on October 7, with Iran's allies also entering the fray from Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

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