Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, has said the kingdom is getting closer to reaching a normalization deal with Israel, denying reports that negotiations were halted.

Mohammed said good negotiations are ongoing, and the Palestinian issue is very important, that they need to solve that part

For months, there has been speculation as to whether Saudi Arabia could be the next country in the Arab world to normalize its relations with Israel.

In September 2020, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain were the first two Gulf countries to establish diplomatic relations with Israel in 2020 under U.S mediation.

Reports suggested that a deal would be linked to security guarantees by the U.S. for Saudi Arabia and help in developing its civilian nuclear programme.

Negotiations also come at a time as Saudi Arabia resumes its diplomatic relations with Iran, an arch foe of Israel.