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The refusal of the dictator and the tip from the Emirates: Behind the scenes of the agreement with Sudan

On the way to a normalization agreement, Israel is the one that mediated between the Trump administration and the government in Khartoum, and pushed Washington to formulate a tripartite deal that would include removing Sudan from the list of terrorists.

Negotiations with the Americans collapsed along the way, but the White House received an explicit message: this is an opportunity not to be missed

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• Sudan

• Omar al-Bashir

• United States

• Mike Pompeo

• Donald Trump

• Benjamin Netanyahu

• 'Abd al-Fatah al-Burhan

Lightning Ravid

Friday, October 30, 2020, 9 p.m.

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In the video: Netanyahu welcomes the normalization agreement with Sudan (Photo: GPO)

Although officially it was the United States that announced the normalization agreement that mediated between Israel and Sudan, behind the scenes it was Israel that mediated in recent months between the Trump administration and the government in Khartoum, pushing Washington to formulate a tripartite deal that would remove Sudan from the US terror list.

Talks with senior Israeli and American officials revealed that the deal announced by Trump last Friday was largely forged as a result of close trust between officials in the Prime Minister's Office and senior members of the leadership in Sudan.

The close relationship with the White House, and the trust created with the Sudanese, allowed Israel to take the shuffling negotiations between Washington and Khartoum and put it on a path that led to the agreement.

The person who held the "Sudan file" in Israel was one of Netanyahu's advisers - an intelligence man who became a diplomat and is known as "Maoz".

After years of working in the Shin Bet, he was "pulled out" by National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat, appointed prime minister's envoy to the Arab world and Africa and entrusted with developing ties with countries that did not have diplomatic relations with Israel.

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Trump announces normalization between Israel and Sudan, last week (Photo: AP)

In early 2019, when demonstrations against the regime began in Sudan, then-Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir sent messages to Israel in an attempt to save his rule.

Israeli officials reveal that the Sudanese dictator then had several telephone conversations with Netanyahu's envoy.

On the Israeli side, they listened to what Bashir had to say, but refused to cooperate with him.

About a year later, in January 2020, a few months after the song was overthrown following a popular protest against him, the dialogue between the parties resumed.

Nick Kaufman, an Israeli-British lawyer who advised the Provisional Government in Sudan regarding the possible extradition of Bashir to the International Criminal Court, told Maoz that he was expected to fly to Khartoum and meet with the chairman of the Provisional Sovereignty Council, General 'Abd al-Fatah al-Fatah. Burhan.

Kaufmann offered adviser to Netanyahu convey a message to the leader of the Sudanese, and Maoz "indeed handed him a letter from the government, which offered Lborhan meet with him and discuss the normalization of relations. Kaufman flew to Khartoum and delivered the letter. When he returned to Israel, he brought a response letter Mborhan Netanyahu , With a positive answer.

Israel refused to cooperate with him.

Former Sudanese dictator Omar al-Bashir, this month (Photo: Reuters)

Upon his return to the country, Kaufman connected Maoz with Najawa Gadheldem - Burhan's political adviser who also served as an adviser to Ugandan President Iwari Mosvini.

The two secretly worked on the existence of a summit between Netanyahu and Burhan in Uganda under the auspices of President Yuri Mosvini.

The summit, held in February, led to a historic breakthrough in relations between the two countries.

Senior Israeli officials said that Burhan had already wanted to move towards normalization, but Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamduk, who was expelled from the summit, strongly opposed such a move.

More on Walla!

NEWS

Sudanese leader defends agreement with Israel: "We were not blackmailed"

To the full article

The Israeli elections and the Corona epidemic led to a slowdown in talks between Israel and Sudan, while Maoz has meanwhile continued weekly telephone conversations with Burhan and his advisers, in which he has built a close relationship of trust with them.

In March, Sudanese authorized El Al planes evacuated by Israelis from South Africa and Latin America to pass through their airspace for the first time.

In April, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Israel.

Senior Israeli officials said that during a visit to Pompeo, Netanyahu said that Sudan was an opportunity, and encouraged him to enter the issue more actively and speak directly with Khartoum - not only in front of Hamdukh but also in front of Burhan.

The Israelis managed to connect the foreign minister to the head of the sovereignty council, and a few days after the visit to Jerusalem, the two talked for the first time.

At the end of May, a tragedy occurred when Najwa Gadhaldam, a consultant to the nearby Burhan and architect of relations between the two countries, became infected in Corona.

Her condition deteriorated rapidly, and as a result - an airplane with a medical crew left Israel for Khartoum, in order to evacuate her for medical treatment in Israel.

However, when the Israeli doctors arrived at the hospital in Khartoum, they realized it was too late.

A few days later, Gadheldam died of the virus.

A summit that led to a breakthrough.

Netanyahu lands in Uganda, February (Photo: Haim Tzach, GPO)

Contacts between the United States and Sudan over the removal of the country from the list of terrorists have been progressing slowly.

But then came the dramatic announcement on August 13 of the normalization agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.

In the new dynamics that have been created, the Trump administration has been looking for more countries to follow in Abu Dhabi.

Israeli and American officials say that in Jerusalem at the time they aimed the White House at Khartoum.

Israel proposed merging the United States-Sudan call channel on the terror list with the Israel-Sudan call channel on normalization.

The Trump administration has received similar advice from the UAE as well.

A new dynamic has been created.

Signing of the "Abraham Agreement" (Photo: Reuters)

At the end of August, when Pompeo visited Israel, Sudan was already high on the agenda of his talks with Netanyahu.

The Israelis used a built relationships with potential partners to organize the American foreign minister direct flights from Tel Aviv to Khartoum. Before they took off there, Pompeo's advisers were given a detailed briefing Netanyahu's advisors, including advice on managing conversations with Sudanese leaders.

Pompeo met in Khartoum with Burhan, who was eager However, he stressed to Pompeo that in order for this to happen he should receive the green light from the Sudanese prime minister. When the US Secretary of State met with Hamduk, immediately afterwards, he offered him a deal: removing Sudan from the terror list, a package American economic aid and normalization with Israel. Pompeo told Hamduk that Trump is ready to implement the deal immediately. According to senior US officials, he even offered to call from the meeting with the President of the United States and Netanyahu to close the deal on the spot. For such a move.

Hamduk and Burhan, this month (Reuters photo)

According to senior Israeli and American officials, in the weeks that followed, the Israelis continued their persuasion efforts against the Trump administration and the Sudanese.

Israel's ambassador to Washington, Ron Drummer, spoke with the White House and Republican and Democratic senators as part of these efforts.

On September 15, Netanyahu met with Pompeo and asked him to give more incentives to Sudan, so that they would agree to a deal.

The US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, and his adviser, Arie Lightstone, also told the White House and the US Secretary of State that they should not miss the opportunity in front of Khartoum.

Six days later, on September 21, the deal seemed almost closed.

The United Arab Emirates and Israel have organized a meeting in Abu Dhabi between a senior Sudanese delegation and a White House team led by Trump's Gulf and Africa adviser, General Miguel Korea.

But after two days of talks, the negotiations exploded.

Contacts for normalization with Sudan - the chain of events

• 2019

  - Sudanese dictator Omar al-Bashir sends messages to Israel in an attempt to save his rule

• January

  - Resumption of dialogue mediated by an Israeli-British lawyer who advised the Provisional Government in Sudan

• February

  - A meeting between Netanyahu and the head of the Sovereignty Council at the summit in Uganda

• April

  - Pompeo visits Israel

• May

  - Special Adviser Gadhalem falls ill in Corona, a delegation of Israeli doctors is sent to Sudan

• August

  - Normalization agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Pompeo-Burhan meeting

• September 21

  - Contacts between Khartoum and Washington reach the brink of an explosion

• September 23

  - Trump announces Israeli-Sudan normalization agreement

One reason for the explosion was the gap between the scope of the economic aid package that Washington was willing to give and the high expectations of the Sudanese - according to senior Israeli and American officials.

Another reason was cultural gaps between the parties and language difficulties, which led to clashes between the representatives for talks and for the negotiations to reach a dead end.

After the collapse of the talks, the Israelis and the emirates tried to bridge the gaps, calm the anger and frustration and bring the parties back to the negotiating table.

Israeli officials said the two countries made it clear to the Sudanese that they should accept the US offer even if it did not include everything they had hoped for, because after the US election they would receive a worse offer.

At the same time, they asked the White House to sweeten the deal as much as possible for the Sudanese.

Thus, at the end of a brief hiatus in negotiations, talks resumed, with White House envoy Avi Berkowitz and General Miguel Korea meeting with the Sudanese ambassador in Washington.

Pompeo spoke with Hamdukh while the Israelis and Amarites continued their persuasion efforts against both sides.

Pompeo-Burhan meeting, August (Photo: Reuters)

On October 21, Israel organized the crucial meeting in Sudan.

Israel will be represented at the meeting envoy of Netanyahu, "stronghold", and PMO Ronen Peretz. To this end, they leased a private jet and flew to Khartoum. Two were accompanied by representatives of the United States, Korea and Lightstone.

When they reached the bow, they met Burhan and the negotiating team Israeli officials say that after several hours of talks, contacts have once again reached the brink of an explosion - especially over the question of what will happen first - removing Sudan from the terror list or normalizing with Israel. The

Sudanese wanted the United States to announce their removal from the terror list. That Sudan would first announce normalization with Israel, or at least announce it at the same time as an American announcement of the terrorist list, and finally Washington agreed to the Sudanese request - and two days later, in a telephone conversation with Netanyahu and Sudanese leaders in front of television cameras .

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