Bahraini chief diplomat Abdellatif al-Zayani on Wednesday (November 18th) began the first official visit to Israel by a minister of the Gulf monarchy who aims to open embassies in the two countries shortly.
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Abdellatif al-Zayani and a delegation from Bahrain, a country which announced in September the normalization of its relations with Israel, were greeted by Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi upon their arrival at Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv. Aviv, where the flags of both countries and that of the United States were fluttering in the wind.
"
This is the first official visit of a delegation from Bahrain to Israel and therefore a historic day for the Middle East,
" Ashkenazi said later during a joint press briefing in Jerusalem, calling Minister Zayani a "
good friend
" and "
partner
".
“
During our discussions, we agreed to open an Israeli embassy in Manama and a Bahraini embassy in Israel as soon as possible.
I hope that by the end of the year we will be able to hold ceremonies to mark these inaugurations in both countries,
”added the Israeli minister, specifying that from December 1 the citizens of Bahrain will be able to apply online. a visa to visit Israel.
Requests to open an Israeli embassy in Bahrain and a Bahraini embassy in Israel have been "
approved,
" Zayani confirmed, saying he wanted the openings "
relatively quickly
."
Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates signed in September in Washington agreements to normalize their relations with Israel, an initiative described as "
betrayal
" by the Palestinians.
The latter consider that the normalization of relations between Israel and the Arab world is only possible after an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement and not the other way around.