Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has secretly visited Saudi Arabia for a meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Israel’s state-owned Kan news reported on Monday.
The Prime Minister’s Office has not made any comment so far.
Netanyahu was accompanied by the head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, Yossi Cohen, Kan reported. The two met with the crown prince and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is in Saudi Arabia for a visit.
The meeting took place in the city of Neom in northwestern Saudi Arabia, according to Kan.
The Hebrew-language Haaretz newspaper published aviation tracking data that shows Netanyahu’s plane headed back to Israel after about five hours on the ground.
Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration wish that Saudi Arabia would follow the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in normalizing ties with Israel.
Riyadh has declined to form formal ties with Israel, saying the Israeli-Palestinian conflict should be discussed first.
However, Riyadh recently announced Israeli airliners could fly over Saudi Arabia to newly available Gulf destinations and to Asia.
Israeli PM reportedly meets Saudi crown prince
