Israel, UAE, Bahrain sign landmark US-brokered Abraham Accords

Israel, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain met at the White House on Tuesday to sign a landmark agreement that will see the Jewish state and its Gulf neighbors normalize ties.

“This peace will eventually expand to include other Arab states -- and ultimately, it can end the Arab-Israeli conflict once and for all,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address from the White House, with US President Donald Trump overseeing the historic signing ceremony.

“History has taught us that strength brings security, strength brings allies, and ultimately -- this is something President Trump said again and again -- ultimately, strength brings peace,” Netanyahu asserted.

Israel’s longest-serving prime minister and the respective foreign ministers of Bahrain and the UAE sealed the historic deal, called the Abraham Accords, with a signing ceremony hosted by the US president. 

Hundreds of guests attended the event in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic as there were no ceremonial handshakes to cement the agreements.

Bahrain and the UAE are the first Arab nations to establish relations with Israel since Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.

Trump hailed the deals as a “historic day for peace in the Middle East. After decades of division and conflict we mark the dawn of a new Middle East,” he added. “We’re here this afternoon to change the course of history.”

UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan took the opportunity to refer to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, noting that “this agreement will allow us to defend the Palestinian people and realize their hope for an independent state.”

Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani also mentioned the Palestinians during the occasion, calling for a return to a two-states solution.