UAE-Israel deal

Israel and the United Arab Emirates stunned the world by announcing the “full normalization of relations” under a US-brokered deal. This would make the UAE the third Arab state to recognise Israel, after Egypt and Jordan. The move is being touted by the signatories and many of their allies as a great leap forward. Many Muslims are pleased that the deal explicitly mentions that Muslims from other third countries will be allowed to fly into Israel via the UAE and to pray at Al Aqsa Mosque. Some are even trying to sell it as a positive step for the Palestinians. Of course, none of those people are Palestinian.

Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nayhan, the de facto ruler of the Emirates, said “an agreement was reached to stop further Israeli annexation of Palestinian territories”. Notice the word ‘stop’. This is how the deal is being sold in the Muslim world. But the actual agreement only uses the word suspend, specifically that “Israel will suspend declaring sovereignty” over parts of the West Bank. Trump also used the word “suspend” when referring to the deal. In his speech delivered in Hebrew, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explicitly said that he “did not and will not remove sovereignty from the agenda... I will never give up on our right to our land.”

PLO Executive Committee Member Hanan Ashrawi pointed out this charade, tweeting that “Israel got rewarded for not declaring openly what it’s been doing to Palestine illegally and persistently since the beginning of the occupation. The UAE has come out in the open on its secret dealings/normalization with Israel. Please don’t do us a favor. We are nobody’s fig leaf!” She also attacked the UAE Crown Prince’s statement, saying, “May you never experience the agony of having your country stolen; may you never feel the pain of living in captivity under occupation; may you never witness the demolition of your home or murder of your loved ones. May you never be sold out by your ‘friends’.”

The entire document gives nothing to Palestine. Not even an assurance to continue talks. A sentence regarding how “the parties will continue their efforts... to achieve a just, comprehensive and enduring resolution” to the conflict contains no hard deadlines or conditions. The suspension will likely be lifted as soon as it is politically beneficial to Netanyahu and Trump. The truth is that several Arab states have already established strong ties with Israel due to their common enemy — Iran. We also know that these countries could not care less for their oppressed Muslim brothers, be they Palestinian, Kashmiri, or Rohingya. Their decision-making is driven by finance, not religious fraternity or human rights. Money talks, and it is the oppressors who have cold, hard cash.

And if Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son in law and his senior adviser, is to be believed another Arab country is likely to follow the UAE in establishing ties with Israel. Kushner told reporters after the agreement: “There is a good chance that another country could make a deal with Israel in the coming days.” The claim coincides with a report in the Al Quds newspaper quoting an unnamed US official as saying that it was just “a matter of time” before Bahrain and Oman established ties with Israel.

Well, there is no harm in recognising an Israel that behaves like a peaceful and responsible member of the comity of nations. But that Israel does not exist. What does exist is rather an apartheid state in the midst of powerful Arab countries.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 15^th, 2020.

Like Business on Facebook, follow @TribuneBiz on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.