President Joe Biden Suggests Hamas Attack Was Aimed at Disrupting Israel-Saudi Arabia Normalization Process

President Joe Biden announced on Friday that he believes Hamas was motivated to attack Israel in an attempt to prevent the normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

The President made the comments at a campaign fundraiser, citing his plans to partner with Saudi Arabia on a shipping corridor announced in September at the Group of 20 summit in India.

The U.S. president indicated that he thinks Hamas militants launched a deadly assault on Oct. 7 because, “Guess what? One of the reasons … why Hamas moved on Israel, is because they knew I was about to sit down with the Saudis.”

The relationship between Israel and Saudi Arabia has been steadily improving, with the Biden administration playing a key role in the process. The President’s comments suggest that Hamas was attempting to disrupt the process of normalization between the two countries.

The Biden administration has been working to bring the two countries closer together, and the President’s comments suggest that the efforts have been successful enough to draw the attention of Hamas. The President’s remarks also suggest that the normalization process between Israel and Saudi Arabia is likely to continue.