Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman says Palestinians need to take peace proposals offered by the U.S. or end their complaints, according to Axios.
The leader’s comments come from a closed-door meeting in New York late last month that included the heads of Jewish organizations.
“In the last several decades the Palestinian leadership has missed one opportunity after the other and rejected all the peace proposals it was given. It is about time the Palestinians take the proposals and agree to come to the negotiations table or shut up and stop complaining,” bin Salman told the room, according to unnamed sources quoted by Axios.
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Bin Salman noted that Palestine was not a top priority for the Saudi government, which is more focused on issues like Iran’s influence in the Middle East, Axios reported.
The prince said that, despite his criticism of Palestinian leadership, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states need to make progress in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process in order to normalize relations with Israel.
Bin Salman’s comments reportedly surprised Jewish leaders present at the meeting, with Axios’s source saying people “literally fell off their chairs.”
The comments come as the Trump administration — led by senior adviser Jared Kushner and special envoy Jason Greenblatt — continues to draft a peace plan between Palestine and Israel.
The plan is reportedly near completion and the White House peace team is reportedly discussing when to reveal it.
Palestinians have boycotted the White House since it announced that it was moving its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, with the new embassy set to open next month.