Blinken says Saudi-Israeli normalisation plan near 'completion', no Rafah plan that protects civilians yet

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US and Saudi Arabia have done intensive work over the past month to reach a normalisation deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel.

"The work that Saudi Arabia, the United States have been doing together in terms of our own agreements, I think, is potentially very close to completion," he said in Riyadh, at the World Economic Forum.

Blinken reiterated the US's opposition to an Israeli offensive on Rafah, saying Israel has yet to present a plan that would protect the civilians sheltering there.

"We have not yet seen a plan that gives us confidence that civilians can be effectively protected," he said.