Israel acts like the world's spoilt child: Saudi Arabia

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal also urged countries to adopt a firm and serious stance to put an end to the policy of settlements in occupied Palestinian territories and in Jerusalem.

Not reaching solutions (for the Middle East conflict) is (the result of) the special treatment Israel gets, he said at a news conference with visiting Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu.

When they violate international law, other countries get punished but not Israel ... Israel has become like the spoilt child of the international community. It (Israel) gets away with anything it does without accountability or punishment, he added.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is backed by Riyadh, has insisted Israel freeze Jewish settlement building before peace talks for a Palestinian state in territory Israel captured in a 1967 war resume.

He has rejected a temporary halt to construction ordered by Netanyahu as insufficient.

Israel announced on Monday plans to build nearly 700 new Jewish homes in areas of the occupied West Bank it considers part of Jerusalem, prompting strong U.S. criticism implying they could undermine peace talks.

Prince Saud said the policy of expanding settlements was a source of deep concern and condemnation for both us and the international community.

This policy casts doubts on the seriousness of (Israel's) commitment to the peace process, Prince Saud said.

Saudi Arabia floated in 2002 an Arab peace plan that calls for a complete Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank and East Jerusalem and a fair solution to the crisis of Palestinian refugees in exchange for normalized ties with the Arab world.

(Reporting by Souhail Karam)