Credit: BBC
"I don't trust a thing he says," King Abdullah about Netanyahu
- King Abdullah II says the Middle East is “doomed” without a peace process leading to a Palestinian state.
- He warned that without a political horizon, the region risks repeating cycles of violence.
King Abdullah II of Jordan has warned that the Middle East is “doomed” unless a peace process leads to the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
The Jordanian monarch made the remarks in an exclusive interview with BBC Panorama, ahead of his participation in a summit in Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh focused on US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan for the region.
The summit coincided with Hamas releasing the last remaining 'Israeli' captives in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian detainees held by ‘Israel’.
“If we don't solve this problem,” King Abdullah said, “if we don't find a future for Israelis and Palestinians and a relationship between the Arab and Muslim worlds and Israel, we're doomed.”
He emphasized that despite numerous failed peace efforts, the two-state solution remains the only viable path.
“I hope we can move things back, but with a political horizon, because if we don't solve this problem, we're going to be at it again,” the King said.
The current 'Israeli' government has firmly rejected the two-state solution. During his UN General Assembly address last month, 'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said:
“In fact, they effectively had a Palestinian state - in Gaza. What did they do with that state? Peace? Co-existence?”
“No, they attacked us time and time again, totally unprovoked, they fired rockets into our cities, they murdered our children, they turned Gaza into a terror base from which they committed the October 7 massacre,” he said.
At the same UN meeting, US President Trump invited King Abdullah and other regional leaders to discuss his peace plan.
“The message he gave all of us was that, 'This has to stop. It has to stop now.' And we said, 'You know, Mr President, if anybody can do it, it's you,’” King Abdullah told the BBC.
Reflecting on the past two years of violence, including the ‘Israeli’-Iran war and an ‘Israeli’ strike on Hamas leaders in Qatar, the King questioned: “How close have we come to regional, if not a southern-northern divide conflict that would have encompassed the whole world?”
Not Trusting 'Israeli' PM Benjamin Netanyahu
Speaking about Netanyahu, King Abdullah remarked that he does not “trust a thing he says,” though he expressed belief that there are 'Israelis' with whom Arab leaders can cooperate to build peace.
Regarding Hamas’ agreement to hand over Gaza’s administration to an independent Palestinian body under the ceasefire deal, the King said he had been assured by Qatar and Egypt -two nations closely engaged with the group- that they were “very, very optimistic” Hamas would comply.
However, he warned that “the devil was in the detail” of the Trump-mediated agreement and stressed the importance of sustained US involvement once a ceasefire is achieved.
“In our discussions with President Trump, he knows that it's not just Gaza, it's not just a particular political horizon. I mean he's looking at bringing peace to the whole region. That doesn't happen unless the Palestinians have a future.”
Asked whether he expects to see a final peace agreement establishing a Palestinian state within his lifetime, King Abdullah replied:
“I have to, because the alternative would mean probably the end of the region. My father, I remember towards the end of his life, used to say, 'I want peace for my children and their children.' I have two grandchildren; they deserve that peace. How awful would it be for them to grow up to say the same thing that my father said years ago?”
“And I think that's what galvanises me and many of us in the region, that peace is the only option. Because if it doesn't come about, how often is the West, America in particular, dragged into this? It's been 80 years. And I think it's time for all of us to say enough is enough.”
According to health officials in Gaza, more than 67,000 people have been killed by ‘Israeli’ forces since October 7, 2023, most of whom were women and children, and over 170,000 were injured. Numerous victims remain trapped under the rubble and on the streets, as ambulance and civil defense crews are still unable to reach them.
Despite the grim reality, King Abdullah II believes that the current moment represents a genuine opportunity for peace, the BBC reported.
