Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman has requested help from former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in helping him renew the kingdom's license to use embattled Israeli cyber firm NSO Group's controversial Pegasus spyware despite its shady human rights record, the New York Times reported Friday in an investigative report co-signed by journalist Ronen Bergman of Ynet's sister public Yedioth Ahronoth.
According to the report, about a month after Israel signed the Abraham Accords, formalizing diplomatic ties with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, the Defense Ministry refused to renew NSO's expired export license to Saudi Arabia.
The crown prince contacted Netanyahu after numerous calls among his aides, NSO executives, the Mossad and the Defense Ministry had failed to resolve the issue.
Netanyahu reportedly ordered the Defense Ministry to authorize the use of Pegasus in Saudi Arabia, signing all the pertinent documents the very next day.