The United States and Saudi Arabia are "days away" from concluding the documents that would forge a historic bilateral agreement that has long been a top priority for President Joe Biden as it would begin a parallel track to normalize relations between the Kingdom and Israel, a source very familiar with the matter told CBS News on Sunday.

A U.S. official confirmed that a lot of progress was made Saturday in a meeting between National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, a city in the kingdom's far east that's home to its state-run oil giant, the Saudi Arabian Oil Co. known as Saudi Aramco.

In a statement released overnight Saturday, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the draft agreement as "nearly final."

The first component of the deal includes a series of agreements between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, including defense guarantees and civil nuclear cooperation. The Biden administration would solidify its ties to Saudi Arabia at a time when adversary China is attempting to expand its influence in the Middle East.

A second component would normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel, but that is contingent on a third complicated and aspirational component that would forge a pathway to a Palestinian state.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently described that part of the vision as requiring both "calm in Gaza" and a "credible pathway to a Palestinian state." Sullivan, who arrived in the region on Saturday, and other Biden officials also traveled to Israel on Sunday and are expected to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the proposed deal.

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A source very familiar with the Kingdom's position told CBS that Saudi Arabia has made clear that nothing can move forward without a two-state solution that includes Palestinian self-rule in both the West Bank and Gaza.  Putting aside the Palestinian issue is nearly impossible now due to the widespread outcry in the Arab world over the immense humanitarian toll on Palestinians in Gaza since Israel invaded the 25-mile territory in pursuit of the Hamas terrorists who killed 1,200 people on Oct 7.

Since that time Biden has frequently cited his belief that Hamas launched that brutal attack to stop his earlier attempts to forge a Saudi-Israel normalization deal that would not have prioritized the Palestinians.

Given Netanyahu's stated opposition to a Palestinian state, it is unclear what he will agree to but the domestic political crisis in Israel is building pressure on him. Two of the three unity war cabinet ministers have publicly questioned Netanyahu's Gaza strategy this past week, and Minister Benny Gantz threatened to quit by June 8 if key decisions were not made. Gantz has already called for elections in September and is widely seen as a potential future prime minister himself. In recent days, Gantz has been speaking with Sullivan about the Saudi deal as well according to a spokesperson.

Biden administration officials hope that the politically embattled Netanyahu will view the significant security and diplomatic win of normalizing with Saudi Arabia as an opportunity and a reason to make a compromise on Palestinian issues despite the danger of alienating right-wing members whose support is critical to the survival of his fragile coalition government.

Some of those nationalist right-wing ministers seek Israeli settlement and control of the Palestinian-majority West Bank and Gaza and refer to them in Biblical terms as Judea and Samaria.

There are also domestic complications in the U.S. The source very familiar acknowledged to CBS News that the "pressure is on" to complete the deal given that there are only a few weeks left in the Congressional calendar, and a security deal would have to go to lawmakers for their approval. The presumption has been that Democrats were skeptical of the Kingdom for its human rights abuses and Prince Mohammad would be more likely to green-light the agreement and its nuclear component if asked to do so by a Democratic president.

Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham - a Trump ally - has also been traveling to the region and pressing for this diplomatic deal which builds on the architecture of the Trump-era Abraham Accords, which helped normalize relations between Israel and many of its regional neighbors but not Saudi Arabia. While Trump could theoretically also pursue an Israel-Saudi deal if he wins the general election in November, it may be harder for him to persuade Democrats to vote for it. During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump has frequently touted his legacy in the region.

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Sullivan, Saudi crown prince discuss security agreement

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met with the Saudi crown prince over the weekend to discuss a security agreement between the two countries.

The state-run Saudi Press Agency said Sullivan and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman talked about a “semi-final” version of a security agreement, The Associated Press (AP) reported. A security deal between the two countries was upended last year following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel that prompted widespread war in the Gaza Strip.

“The semi-final version of the draft strategic agreements between the kingdom and the United States of America, which are almost being finalized — and what is being worked on between the two sides in the Palestinian issue to find a credible path — were discussed,” the statement released by Saudi state media reads, according to AP.

The AP noted that the Saudi Press Agency did not release any photos of the two officials speaking. There was no immediate statement released by the U.S. about the discussions as of Sunday morning.

Saudi Arabia stepped away from discussions about an agreement following the outbreak of the war in Gaza. However, Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to the country earlier this year and said the crown prince told him normalization was still possible.

“He and virtually every other leader I talked to supports moving forward with integration, normalization, whatever you want to call it,” Blinken said in an NBC interview. “But of course, the conflict in Gaza needs to end, and there has to be a pathway for Palestinian rights.”

The Biden administration announced that Sullivan would be traveling to Saudi Arabia on Saturday “to discuss bilateral and regional matters, including the war in Gaza and ongoing efforts to achieve a lasting peace and security in the region.”

He heads to Israel on Sunday where he will meet with senior Israeli officials including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to talk about the ongoing war and “ongoing negotiations” to release hostages being held by Hamas.

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US envoy touts 'potential' of Israel-Saudi deal in Netanyahu talks

US President Joe Biden's national security advisor briefed Benjamin Netanyahu on the "potential" of a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia after holding talks in the region, the White House said Sunday.

Jake Sullivan also called on the Israeli prime minister to link the military operation against Hamas in Gaza with a "political strategy" for the future of the Palestinian enclave, it said in a readout of the talks.

In a weekend of high-stakes diplomacy, Sullivan met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Dharan on Saturday, before flying directly to Israel for talks with Netanyahu and other key officials.

"Mr Sullivan briefed Prime Minister Netanyahu and his team on these meetings and the potential that may now be available for Israel, as well as the Palestinian people," the White House said.

Saudi state media reported earlier Sunday that Sullivan and Prince Mohammed, the country's de facto ruler, discussed a "semi-final" version of a deal expected to beef up security ties between their two countries.

That deal is considered a major part of Washington's efforts to bring Riyadh around to a so-called mega-deal recognizing the state of Israel for the first time -- efforts complicated by the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.

There was no immediate reaction from Israel, which despite relying on Washington for military aide has largely spurned Biden's calls for restraint in Gaza.

While in Israel Sullivan had "reiterated the president's longstanding position on Rafah," the southern Gazan town where Israel is threatening a major offensive, the White House said.

The Biden administration has called on Israel to avoid such an operation and recently halted a shipment of bombs to its longstanding ally due to concerns they might be used in Rafah.

Sullivan also "reaffirmed the need for Israel to connect its military operations to a political strategy that can ensure the lasting defeat of Hamas, the release of all the hostages, and a better future for Gaza", it said.

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US security adviser urges Netanyahu to connect war to 'political strategy'

US President Joe Biden's national security adviser has urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to connect the war in Gaza to a "political strategy" for the territory's future.

Jake Sullivan met Mr Netanyahu in Israel after holding talks in Saudi Arabia on Saturday.

His intervention comes a day after war cabinet minister Benny Gantz threatened to quit if Mr Netanyahu did not come up with a post-war plan for Gaza.

Mr Netanyahu has so far not articulated a vision for what comes after the war, saying only that he is focused on "total victory".

However there is a growing political rift in Israel over the issue, with Mr Gantz and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant arguing that Israel should not maintain military rule in Gaza while others, including far-right members of Mr Netanyahu's coalition, say continued control is necessary to defeat Hamas.

Mr Sullivan "reaffirmed the need for Israel to connect its military operations to a political strategy that can ensure the lasting defeat of Hamas, the release of all the hostages, and a better future for Gaza," a White House statement said.

The US national security advisor also spoke with Mr Netanyahu about his talks in Saudi Arabia and "the potential that may now be available for Israel, as well as the Palestinian people".

The Biden administration has been working on a possible deal that would include Saudi-Israeli normalisation and a commitment to pursuing a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians - the long-held international formula for peace.

Meanwhile fighting continues to rage in Gaza. The UN says about 800,000 people, many of whom have been displaced multiple times over seven months of war, have left the southern Gaza city of Rafah where Israel has launched a military operation targeting what it says is Hamas's last stronghold in Gaza.

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However the Israeli military has also launched incursions targeting what it says is a renewed Hamas presence in parts of northern Gaza that it previously said it had cleared of the armed group.

On Sunday the Hamas-run civil defence agency in Gaza said an Israeli air strike on the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza had killed 31 people and wounded 20.

Eyewitness Yasser Abu Oula told AFP that an entire residential complex "was destroyed" and "there are still bodies under the rubble".

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was checking the reports.

The IDF also said it had struck dozens of targets in Gaza including in Rafah, and had engaged in fierce battles in Jabalia in northern Gaza. It said that two soldiers were killed fighting in the south on Saturday.

The US has long warned Israel against conducting a full-scale military incursion into Rafah without a plan to protect civilians, which the US says has not been provided.

The White House has previously said that it would stop supplying some weapons if Israel launches a major ground offensive on the city.

However an Israeli official told Reuters news agency that Mr Netanyahu and his senior aides would try to reach an agreement with Mr Sullivan that a full push into Rafah was needed.

In his intervention, Mr Gantz set an 8 June deadline for a plan to achieve six "strategic goals", including the end of Hamas rule in Gaza and the establishment of a multinational civilian administration for the territory.

Mr Netanyahu dismissed Mr Gantz's comments, saying they would lead to "defeat for Israel" and "the establishment of a Palestinian state", which he opposes.

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza to destroy Hamas in response to the group's attack on southern Israel last year, during which about 1,200 people were killed and 252 others were taken hostage.

More than 35,456 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

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