President Donald Trump said Friday that Israel has been assisting Saudi Arabia in its fight against Iran-backed Houthi forces, and suggested the kingdom could be closer than ever to joining the Abraham Accords.
Asked by reporters at the White House whether Saudi Arabia should accept Israeli help against the Houthis, Trump responded, “Yeah, I do. I think they will. Israel has been very helpful to Saudi Arabia.”
The comment marked a rare public acknowledgment of Israeli assistance to Saudi Arabia, a country that has no formal diplomatic relations with Israel.
When asked if Saudi Arabia’s entry into the Abraham Accords was back under consideration, Trump indicated the prospects had improved. “Yeah, I think so. Maybe more than ever,” he said. “The Abraham Accords is one of our great achievements. I would say maybe more than ever. But Saudi Arabia is very happy to have Israel’s support and our support.”
The remarks came as Houthi forces have ramped up attacks across Saudi Arabia, striking airports, oil facilities and military sites in a campaign that has killed civilians, disrupted international travel and threatened the kingdom’s infrastructure.
A missile strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport last weekend was part of that campaign. Saudi-led coalition officials said Thursday that repeated strikes on the airport this month have killed 17 people and wounded 333.
The attacks continued Friday. Saudi-led coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki said forces intercepted a ballistic missile headed toward Yanbu, two cruise missiles over the Red Sea, and three drones targeting the kingdom.
The U.S. Embassy in Riyadh issued a security alert Friday warning of possible attacks on Saudi airports and flight disruptions, and said U.S. government personnel would need special authorization before traveling through the kingdom’s airports.
Growing Security Ties
Trump’s remarks highlighted expanding security cooperation between Israel and Saudi Arabia as the Houthi threat grows. Israeli media reported last month that Saudi Arabia had asked the United States for help against the Houthis and was receiving Israeli intelligence through U.S. Central Command, including intelligence aimed at protecting the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which links the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
That cooperation has largely involved intelligence-sharing, though American officials have also discussed the possibility of direct Israeli military action against the Houthis. According to ynet, U.S. officials raised that option with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who warned it could risk a wider confrontation with Iran.
Accords Ambitions
The deepening security relationship could also support Trump’s long-running push to bring Saudi Arabia into the Abraham Accords, the U.S.-brokered agreements that normalized relations between Israel and several Arab nations, including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, during Trump’s first term in 2020.
Saudi Arabia has long been viewed as the most consequential potential addition to the accords. U.S.-backed normalization talks had been gaining momentum before Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel derailed the process.
Trump revived the effort earlier this year, tying expanded U.S.-Saudi civilian nuclear cooperation to the kingdom’s potential entry into the accords. His comments Friday tied Israel’s growing security role in Saudi Arabia directly to that broader diplomatic goal.
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