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UAE cabinet approves decision to open embassy in Tel Aviv

Sunday, 24 January 2021 6:35 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 24 January 2021 6:44 PM ]

Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, left, applauds as Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, second left, US President Donald Trump, second right, and United Arab Emirates (UAE) Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed display their copies of signed normalization agreements, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, September 15, 2020. (Photo by Reuters)

The government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has approved a previous decision to establish its embassy in Tel Aviv, months after Abu Dhabi agreed to normalize relations with the Israeli regime.

According to Dubai-based English language newspaper Gulf News, the decision was approved during Sunday’s Cabinet meeting chaired by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the vice president, prime minister and ruler of Dubai.

The UAE formally agreed in August 2020 to a normalization agreement with Israel through a deal brokered by the former US president, Donald Trump, during his last months in office.

It was soon followed by similar decisions by Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco, all of whom were pushed by the Trump administration to normalize relations with the regime in Tel Aviv.

Palestinians have denounced the agreements as “treacherous,” with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas describing them as a stab in the back of the Palestinian nation. The spokesman for Palestinian resistance movement, Hamas, Sami Abu Zuhri, said for his part that regional nations will continue to deal with the Israeli occupation as their true enemy.

UAE, Bahrain sign normalization deals with Israel at White House

The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain sign controversial normalization agreements with Israel at the White House.

Israel opens embassy in Abu Dhabi

Israel announced later on Sunday that its embassy had opened in Abu Dhabi, Reuters reported.

In a statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said Israel’s embassy in Abu Dhabi officially opened on Sunday with the arrival of the country’s envoy there, albeit in a temporary location until permanent premises are found.

The Israeli government regards Jerusalem al-Quds as its capital, although most of the international community does not recognize the claim.

Trump recognized Jerusalem al-Quds as Israel’s capital in December 2017, and the US officially announced the opening of its new embassy in the city in May 2018.