Normalisation of Saudi-Israeli ties is Hamas's target

Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel, welcomed and celebrated by Iran, appears to be aimed to complicate the historic process of normalisation between Israel and Saudi Arabia that is underway in the region and has the potential to dramatically alter global geopolitics.

- Prashant Jha

But initial responses to the terror attacks from Israel's Arab neighbours indicate that while they will stick to the stated line of support for Palestinians, they don't wish to let Saturday's developments completely derail the prospects for normalcy on the table.

Whether Riyadh can stay the course, and whether Tel Aviv can find it within its national psyche to accommodate Palestinian aspirations to enable normalisation with its other neighbours, even as it mounts a war in Palestinian territory, will be critical variables to watch in the weeks and months ahead.

This is not to suggest that the historical roots of the conflict, Israel's brutality in Gaza, the farright turn in Tel Aviv and its adverse implications for Israel's own security preparedness, Hamas's search for relevance and power and its terror machine, the disputes around the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the anxieties among Palestinians, and the lack of movement towards a viable two-state solution aren't the underlying factors at play.

But Hamas's unacceptable terror attacks against Israel must be located within this particular juncture in West Asian politics.