Israel has opened an embassy in the United Arab Emirates following last year’s US-brokered agreement to establish full diplomatic ties with the Gulf country.
“The Israeli Embassy in Abu Dhabi has officially been opened, with the arrival of mission head Eitan Naeh,” a Foreign Ministry statement said, adding that the mission would strive to “expand ties with the Emirati government, financial bodies, and the private sector, universities, the media and more.”
Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi said that the development would “enable the expansion of bilateral relations between Israel and the Emirates for a swift and maximal implementation of the potential in these ties.”
Concurrently, the UAE cabinet approved the opening of an embassy in Israel.
The United Arab Emirates was the first of four Arab countries to forge or renew ties with Israel under the auspices of the Abraham Accords. Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco are the others.
The commander of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie, will visit Israel on Thursday for the first time since the inauguration of President Joe Biden. Planned high-level talks will take place as regional tensions continue to rise, and against the backdrop of reports that US officials have resumed negotiations with Iran over the possibility of Washington reentering the 2015 nuclear deal.
Also on the agenda will be expanding the Jewish state’s burgeoning relationships with Sunni Arab and Muslim nations.
The visit comes shortly after former president Donald Trump transferred responsibility for military issues related to Israel from the US European Command to CENTCOM, partly as a result of warming ties between Jerusalem and its neighbors.
Relatedly, local media reported that White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan over the weekend told his Israeli counterpart Meir Ben Shabbat that the Biden Administration would consult with Israel on regional security issues and build on the country’s normalization agreements.
Jews worldwide will likely face a significant rise in antisemitic incidents this year, Israel’s Diaspora Ministry has warned. In particular, the ministry’s annual report stressed that anti-Jewish conspiracy theories about the origins of the coronavirus would spike in 2021.
Overall, the document noted that online antisemitism rose significantly in 2020, while highlighting a Twitter campaign comparing Israel to a virus that was supposedly initiated by Iranian agents.
Notably, the 140-page report cited an increase in antisemitism in the United States.
City Transformer, the Israeli company behind a novel car that can shrink to fit into parking spots, is slated to be listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in March.
City Transformer’s CT-1 electric car is 2.49 meters (8.169 feet) long and 1.4 meters (4.59 feet) wide. The wheelbase of the vehicle, however, can shrink to a width of just one meter (3.28 feet). This aims to make it easier to maneuver through traffic or park in tight spots. City Transformer claims that four of its CT-1’s can fit into a parking space generally reserved for one regular-sized car.
The company announced that it had raised NIS 35 million ($10 million) in funding, including grants from the Energy Ministry and the Israel Innovation Authority. City Transformer’s current estimated total value is NIS 450-600 million ($137-183 million).
Sunday, January 31
Webinar and Q&A – ‘How to Make Your Point and Keep Your Cool!‘
Has Israel become a dirty word? Do you feel as if you’re banging your head against the wall? Join us to learn the secret to getting your point across effectively. Due to popular demand, we are rerunning this webinar, updated with live Q&A.
- Closing Army Radio: The Beginning of the End of Israel’s Public Broadcast (Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post)
- Antisemitism on the March From Kuwait to Tunisia (Amjad Taha, Israel Hayom)
- Israel, Don’t Trust Turkey (Dmitri Shufutinsky, Begin-Sadat Center For Strategic Studies)
- All Good Moves in Bhutan-Israel Chess Tournament (Jessica Steinberg, Times of Israel)
- Tu B’Shvat: An Annual Reminder to Appreciate the Beauty of the Land of Israel (Gary Schiff, Jewish News Syndicate)
