Israel’s Normalization With U.A.E. Squeezes Saudi Arabia

The surprise move by the United Arab Emirates to normalize ties with Israel piles pressure on Saudi Arabia to follow suit, at the risk of inflaming public sentiment and breaking from the monarchy’s record of promoting the Palestinian cause.

The diplomatic breakthrough also scrambles a volatile rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Both have competed for the mantle of Islamic leadership and used support for the Palestinians to burnish their credentials among fellow Muslims. Any Saudi-Israeli rapprochement, in the absence of…