Hawzah News Agency- A high-ranking Hamas official has called on Arab nations to refrain from recognizing Israel, as the United States seeks to persuade Saudi Arabia to join a small group of regional countries that have normalized relations with Israel.

“We call on them not to normalize,” Hamas political bureau member Basem Naim told the AFP news agency.

“We call on all Arab countries, both those currently normalizing and those considering normalization, to step back from this.”