US President Joe Biden said Hamas attacked Israel in part to stymie its efforts to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia, his most illuminating comments yet on the impetus for the crisis in the Middle East.

“One of the reasons why they acted like they did, why Hamas moved on Israel, is because they knew I was about to sit down with the Saudis,” Biden said on Friday at a campaign fundraiser in Washington. “Because the Saudis wanted to recognize Israel and that would in fact unite the Middle East.”

Under Biden, the US and Saudis were working on a framework for the kingdom to recognize Israel in exchange for US security guarantees. Publicly, administration officials sought to play down talk of a breakthrough as the talks advanced, but Biden was keen on the initiative and in July sent National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan to the kingdom.

Israel has signed diplomatic deals with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan since 2020, but normalization with Saudi Arabia, the biggest economy in the Middle East, would be a coup for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his country.

Those efforts now are in limbo after the deadly attack by Hamas, which is designated a terrorist state by the US and European Union, on Oct. 7. The attack killed more than 1,400 people and saw over 200 taken hostage. Israel has responded with airstrikes in Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas, and is threatening a ground war to eradicate the group.

The Saudis have paused their efforts to normalize ties with Israel, according to people familiar with the matter. The people familiar, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described it however as only a pause — not an end to the diplomacy.