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Unreported: Saudi King Rewards 1,000 Palestinian Terrorists’ Relatives with Free Mecca Pilgrimage
US President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed Bin Salman shake hands during a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signing ceremony at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Brian Snyder
There has long been speculation about Saudi Arabia normalizing its relations with Israel, as part of US President Donald Trump’s “Abraham Accords.”
However, a new reward by the Saudi king to “honor” Palestinian terrorists’ families shows that the Saudi leadership does not reject Palestinian terror, nor those terrorists who murdered Israeli civilians.
Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas himself “thanked Saudi Arabia and its leadership for the generous grant they provided this year to 1,000 Palestinian pilgrims from among the families of the Martyrs, the prisoners, and the wounded” [Official PA TV News, June 9, 2025].
The relatives of “Martyrs, prisoners, and wounded” — meaning dead, imprisoned, and wounded terrorists — were flown to Mecca for the Hajj pilgrimage by Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
This gesture constitutes a sign of “loyalty” to the terrorists, and a commitment to “constant sponsorship and honoring” vis-a-vis their families, as noted by official PA TV:
Official PA TV reporter: “As part of a generous act from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques [Saudi King Salman], a convoy of pilgrims set out today to the Kaaba [in Mecca] from among the families of the Martyrs, the wounded, and the prisoners …
This initiative expresses the ongoing support of the Saudi Arabian Kingdom for the Palestinian cause, and emphasizes its diligence in easing the suffering of the affected families… out of appreciation for them and loyalty to the Martyrs, with an emphasis on how [the Martyrs’] families will remain a subject of constant sponsorship and honoring.” [emphasis added]
[Official PA TV News, May 31, 2025]
The terrorists whose families Saudi Arabia chose to honor include murderers bent on destroying Israel.
One of the honored pilgrims featured on official PA TV was Saif Abu Qandil. His brother, Fatah terrorist prisoner Yusuf Abu Qandil, together with an accomplice, shot and murdered Israeli civilian Victor Kreiderman and wounded his wife Emma in 2004.
Saif Abu Qandil, who was flown to Mecca together with his sister, thanked Saudi Arabia for the “gesture” [Official PA TV, June 4, 2025].
Another pilgrim featured on PA TV was the sister of terrorist prisoner Karam Hassan. Hassan was a commander of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, Fatah’s terror wing, and oversaw the murder of Israeli civilian Ruth Shua’i in a 2001 drive-by shooting.
The PA has not published a list of the names of the 1,000 terrorists whose relatives were flown to Mecca, so Palestinian Media Watch cannot determine how many are murderers, beyond the two who were interviewed on PA TV.
Trump and Israel should make it clear to the Saudi king that honoring terrorist murderers of Jews by rewarding their families is terror glorification and sends a message to Palestinians that Saudi Arabia welcomes Palestinian terror. This message is incompatible with a normalization process with Israel.
The author is a contributor to Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article first appeared.
The post Unreported: Saudi King Rewards 1,000 Palestinian Terrorists’ Relatives with Free Mecca Pilgrimage first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.