A recent report by Middle East Eye has shed light on a disturbing reality: the Saudi regime continues to prioritise its political image and alliances over human lives, particularly when those lives belong to Palestinians. The report revealed that in 2017, the Saudi regime pressured then–U.S. President Donald Trump to halt airstrikes against Houthi forces in Yemen ahead of his visit to Riyadh—not out of concern for civilian casualties, but to avoid a “politically embarrassing” moment during the high-profile summit.
This episode illustrates a core principle of the regime’s foreign policy: action is taken not when lives are at stake, but when reputation is. The same political machinery that mobilises to protect the regime’s image in Western media has remained notably silent as Israel continues its campaign of destruction in Gaza, targeting residential buildings, hospitals, and civilians—especially children.
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Calculated Silence on Gaza
While Israeli warplanes level entire neighbourhoods in Gaza, the Saudi regime has responded with weak, formulaic statements, devoid of meaningful condemnation or diplomatic action. No pressure has been applied on Washington. No emergency summits have been called. No public denunciations have been made at the United Nations. Even symbolic gestures, like downgrading relations or halting backchannel normalisation with Israel, have been deemed too costly—politically.
This silence is not the result of inaction. It is a deliberate policy. The regime, capable of halting U.S. strikes in Yemen when it sees political risk, has chosen not to intervene as the people of Gaza are massacred. Why? Because the regime calculates no direct harm to its public image or political interests—at least not in the corridors that matter most to it: those of Washington, London, and Tel Aviv.
Pressure Only When It Protects Power
The Middle East Eye report underscores a pattern: the Saudi regime exerts political pressure only when its reputation, access, or ambitions are threatened. Humanitarian concerns take a back seat. In Yemen, the regime used its leverage to delay attacks not to save lives but to avoid embarrassment during Trump’s visit. That same political will could have been applied to demand a ceasefire in Gaza. It wasn’t.
The regime’s silence on Gaza cannot be explained by political caution—it is a loud declaration of where its priorities lie. Protecting arms deals, economic partnerships, and the trajectory of its normalisation process with Israel matters more than Palestinian lives.
A Doctrine of Hypocrisy
The regime continues to present itself as a defender of Arab and Islamic values. Yet its actual policies reveal a doctrine of hypocrisy: bold when shielding its image, passive when Arab blood is spilled. It issues performative statements for Western media while facilitating ties with Israel behind closed doors, hoping to gain recognition and favour from Washington.
This double standard is not just morally bankrupt; it undermines any claim the regime has to leadership in the Arab or Islamic world. It is a betrayal of the Palestinian cause, and more broadly, of the values the regime claims to uphold.
The Collapse of Credibility
Today, every move made by the Saudi regime is viewed through a cynical lens—by both the public and international observers. The question is no longer what it says, but what it refuses to do. Will it leverage its influence to protect the lives of Palestinians? Will it halt normalisation as long as war crimes continue in Gaza? Will it stand for justice—or merely for itself?
The answers are already clear. The regime’s calculated silence on Gaza is not an oversight. It is a political strategy rooted in self-preservation. By placing its image and power above principles, it has forfeited the trust of millions across the region.
History Will Remember the Silence
The Saudi regime demonstrated it could act decisively to protect its diplomatic showmanship in 2017. But when it comes to Gaza—where thousands have been killed and displaced—it has opted for silence and complicity. This is not leadership. It is abandonment.
History will not be kind to those who had the power to speak, to act, to pressure—and chose not to. Gaza is not just a tragedy. It is a mirror. And in it, the world now sees the Saudi regime for what it truly is: a power more concerned with its reflection than the reality of children buried beneath rubble.
