Leaked Report Shows Saudi Plan to Marginalize Hamas, Fund Palestinian Authority
Saudi Arabia intends to take a leading role in post-war Gaza reconstruction by helping to disarm and marginalize Hamas while extending financial and logistical support to the Palestinian Authority (PA), according to an internal foreign ministry report seen by Middle East Eye (MEE).
The classified document outlines Riyadh’s vision to promote stability in Gaza and the Palestinian territories by “progressively reducing Hamas’s influence in governance” and reforming the PA to better represent the Palestinian people and their aspiration for “an independent, sovereign state on the 1967 borders, with Jerusalem as its capital.”
International Peacekeeping and Reform Agenda
According to the report, Saudi Arabia plans to support the deployment of an international peacekeeping mission in Gaza, potentially including Arab and Muslim-majority countries. The plan is being coordinated with Egypt, Jordan, and the PA, following directives from senior Saudi diplomat Manal bint Hassan Radwan.
The document accuses Hamas of “obstructing peace efforts and deepening divisions,” suggesting that the group should be gradually disarmed under international and regional agreements ensuring neutrality.
The Palestinian Authority, which lost control of Gaza in 2007 after violent clashes with Hamas, would gradually assume governance under Saudi-backed reforms. Riyadh proposes measures to combat corruption, improve transparency, and strengthen institutional capacity within the PA.
“Reforming the Authority is a fundamental pillar for achieving national unity and ensuring effective and transparent governance,” the report states, adding that Saudi Arabia will provide financial and technical support to help the PA deliver basic services to Palestinians.
The document also calls for a Palestinian national dialogue to unify all factions under the PA, supported through regional conferences and workshops organized by the kingdom. Israel is notably not mentioned anywhere in the report.
Diplomatic Push and Ceasefire Dynamics
Dated 29 September, the report came a day after Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan addressed the UN General Assembly, urging immediate international intervention to stop Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
Earlier in the year, Saudi Arabia and France reportedly pushed a joint Gaza peace plan, proposing an international security force and renewed Israeli-Palestinian dialogue. Although US President Donald Trump ultimately brokered his own ceasefire in early October, several aspects of the Saudi-French framework appear to have been incorporated into the final deal.
The ceasefire, which includes partial Israeli troop withdrawals and prisoner exchanges, also calls for Hamas’s disarmament — a condition the group says will only be met once Israeli occupation ends and a sovereign Palestinian state is established.
Trump held talks on the sidelines of the UNGA with leaders from Jordan, the UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt, asking them to contribute troops to an international peacekeeping mission in Gaza.
Following the ceasefire, a summit on Gaza’s future was held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, though Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed were notably absent — a signal, regional sources say, of frustration at being sidelined.
As the region’s wealthiest nations, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are expected to finance much of Gaza’s humanitarian relief and reconstruction efforts.
Israeli Opposition to Palestinian Statehood
Meanwhile, influential Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich rejected the idea of recognizing a Palestinian state in exchange for normalization with Saudi Arabia.
“If Saudi Arabia tells us normalization comes in exchange for a Palestinian state, then no thank you,” Smotrich said at a conference hosted by the Tzomet Institute, adding mockingly, “Keep riding your camels in the Saudi desert. We’ll continue to develop our economy and society our own way.”
Source: Middle East Eye
