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When the UAE clashed with the Arab world by normalizing relations with Israel, he said the measure would help alleviate the protracted Arab-Israeli conflict. But nine months later, the rich Gulf state is in a difficult position as its new ally bombs the impoverished Palestinian territory of Gaza.
Israeli warplanes and artillery have been hitting Gaza while Hamas, the group that controls the territory, has launched rockets at Israel. Some 174 Palestinians, including 76 women and children, have been killed, according to health officials at the enclave. Ten people have died in Israel, including two children, local doctors said.
While nearly a third of Arab countries have relations with Israel, this week’s bloodshed shows that the diplomatic ties that initiated last year’s so-called Abraham Accords have given them little influence and have not done so. nothing to alleviate the root cause of the protracted crisis: the Jewish state conflict with the Palestinians.
“They [the UAE] they are clearly in a very difficult position. On the one hand, the UAE’s interests with Israel are long-term and strategic, so ideally their relations should be shock-resistant, “said Cinzia Bianco, a visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Affairs.” At the same time, the United Arab Emirates obviously stated that Abraham’s agreements would give them leverage to support the Palestinians as well and curb Israel’s aggression against them. “
So far, Israel has rejected all international efforts to promote the ceasefire. But Bianco said Abu Dhabi could still deploy diplomatic levers to pressure the Jewish state to limit the scale of its retaliation. This intervention, however, could jeopardize progress on joint projects of strategic value to the United Arab Emirates, he added.
Recent collaborations include plans for U.S. and Israeli defense manufacturers to develop a system to counter drones.
The normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates under the Abraham Accords was quickly followed by similar movements from Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco, which marked a radical departure from the established Arab position towards the Jewish state.
The Arab position before the agreements was that they would recognize Israel only if there was a fair agreement with the Palestinians that would lead to the creation of a viable Palestinian state. The settlement agreements promoted by the Trump administration, which pursued an openly pro-Israel stance, left Palestinians feeling isolated and betrayed. Critics said the Arab states had given up a bargaining tool and had earned little in return, warning that the moves would be exploited by more militant Palestinian factions.
Like other members of the Arab League, the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday approved an appeal to the International Criminal Court to “investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity” committed by Israel against the Palestinians.
“The UAE is defending the rights of the Palestinians for the end of the Israeli occupation and with a two-state solution with an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital,” said Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE president. United, this week. “This is a historical and principled position that does not change.”
Last month, the UAE Foreign Ministry quickly condemned Israeli plans to evict Palestinians from their homes on land claimed by Israeli settlers. And when clashes erupted between Israeli armed police and young Palestinians throwing rocks, the United Arab Emirates urged Israeli authorities to reduce tensions.
The clear public stance of the UAE has given coverage to Emiratis and autocratic residents to condemn Israeli actions and express their support for the Palestinians, after at that time any local anger was suppressed by the previous decision to normalize relationships. Aside from a bunch of Emirati online activists who have sided with Israel, most of the reactions on social media – even from some ministers – have been pro-Palestinian.
“Normalization [of relations] it is irreversible, but it is very difficult to defend it and even talk about it in these circumstances, ”said Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, a Dubai-based political science professor.
After the United Arab Emirates signed its agreement, there was speculation as to whether Saudi Arabia, Israel’s top prize, would follow suit. Like Abu Dhabi, Riyadh has secretly collaborated with Israel on intelligence and security issues, as they share the goal of fighting Iran.
But this week’s Israeli assault on Gaza makes this seem more remote. Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan said on Sunday that the kingdom “categorically rejects Israeli rapes against Palestinians,” while calling for an immediate ceasefire.
In Morocco, which established relations with the Jewish state in October in exchange for U.S. recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed territory of Western Sahara, the foreign ministry said it was watching events “with a deep concern. ”
In 2014, during the last major war between Israel and Hamas, thousands of protesters, including government ministers, took to the streets of Rabat, the capital. This time Moroccan police dispersed a small pro-Palestinian protest in the city this week. It was also reported that the newly formed Morocco-Israel Business Council postponed a virtual meeting aimed at encouraging Moroccan investment in Israel.
Public sentiment in the Arab world remained strongly pro-Palestinian, said HA Hellyer, a senior associate member of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “The absence of protests is not the absence of the desire to protest, but the absence of permission to protest.”
Restrictions on free speech throughout the region made it difficult to measure the extent of public anger, Hellyer said, but social media and extensive coverage on conventional television showed that the “Palestinian question” was still there. close to the heart of the Arabs.
“Nearly half of the messages I received on Thursday for the religious holiday marking the end of Ramadan show images of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem,” he added.
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