A surprise deal reached one year ago to mend ties with Iran has paid dividends for Saudi Arabia, largely shielding it from the Israel-Hamas offensive and related unrest, AFP reports analysts as saying.

Though thorns remain in the complex relationship between the Middle East rivals, the rapprochement amounts to a signature diplomatic achievement for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s hard-charging de facto ruler.

So far, Riyadh has managed to stay above the fray while voicing support for the Palestinian cause, in no small part because it is no longer officially at loggerheads with Tehran.

“Now it is clear how strategic of a choice it was to normalise relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran,” said Saudi analyst Aziz Alghashian. “They have basically shown that they are not each other’s enemy, even if suspicion will always be there… The relationship has been reframed.”

“The steps taken by the two countries are good, but the agreement still requires many confidence-building measures,” said Huda Raouf, head of the Iranian programme at the Egyptian Center for Strategic Studies in Cairo.