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Israel officially signs peace treaties with UAE and Bahrain in White House ceremony

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(L-R)Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, and UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan hold up documents after participating in the signing of the Abraham Accords where the countries of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates recognize Israel, at the White House in Washington, DC, September 15, 2020. - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the foreign ministers of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates arrived September 15, 2020 at the White House to sign historic accords normalizing ties between the Jewish and Arab states. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Sep 17, 2020

by Marcy Oster

(JTA) — Israel signed peace treaties with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain at the White House on Tuesday, with President Donald Trump calling the moment the “dawn of a new Middle East.”

Details about the separate treaties have yet to be disclosed, but they broadly normalize relations between the two Arab countries and Israel, including the opening of embassies in each of the nations for the first time.

The UAE and Bahrain join Egypt and Jordan as the only Arab countries to have peace treaties with Israel.

Trump signed the agreements along with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and the foreign ministers of the two Arab nations, Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the UAE and Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa of Bahrain.

Netanyahu said at the South Lawn ceremony that the agreements “will eventually expand to include other Arab states, and ultimately it can end the Arab- Israeli conflict once and for all,” though he did not specifically mention the Palestinians.

In conjunction with the agreement, the United States has reportedly assured the UAE that Israel would pause West Bank annexation efforts until at least 2024. The UAE wants to purchase F-35 advanced fighter jets from the United States, which has a legal obligation to maintain Israel’s qualitative military edge. Israel has ordered 50 of the planes.

Netanyahu has denied that he agreed to the sale in order to achieve the agreement and leading Democratic lawmakers have come out against the plan.

“Today, we are already witnessing a change at the heart of the Middle East, a change that will send hope around the world,” the UAE’s foreign minister said.

As he spoke, rockets were fired from Gaza at southern Israel. Palestinian leaders have expressed outrage at the Arab countries for abandoning the Palestinians’ fight for an independent state.

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