A total of 62 members of the Knesset voted to endorse the US-brokered agreement, with just 14 against…reports Asian Lite News
Israel’s parliament voted Tuesday for the normalization of ties with Bahrain with a clear majority of lawmakers in favor. Arab News reports
A total of 62 members of the Knesset voted to endorse the US-brokered agreement, with just 14 against.The Arab-led Joint List opposes normalization of Arab states’ ties with the Jewish State as long as it continues to occupy Palestinian territory seized in the 1967 Six-Day war.
Speaking in the televised debate, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chided the party for its attitude to the deal but said there would chances to “fix it” in future, implying more diplomatic accords in the pipeline.
“A strong Israel brings other Arab countries closer to it, including those that have not yet made public the normalization that is developing between us,” he said. “I am convinced that there will be more countries that will officially join the circle of peace.”
The UAE in August became the first Arab state to establish relations with Israel since Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994. It was quickly followed by Bahrain, and later by Sudan.
Last month, The Israeli cabinet has approved the country’s normalisation accord with Bahrain, ahead of a vote in parliament on the historic agreement.
In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office said that the cabinet approved submitting the accord, titled “The Establishment of Diplomatic, Peaceful and Friendly Relations between the State of Israel and the Kingdom of Bahrain” for Parliament’s approval, reports Xinhua news agency.
The agreement, signed at the White House on Septermber 15, was approved unanimously, Tzachi Hanegbi, the Minister of Settlement Affairs, told local media.The cabinet of Bahrain approved the deal on October 19.
The Israeli cabinet ratified the normalisation agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the cabinet said in its statement. The accord was signed at the White House together with the Bahraini accord in September and approved by the Israeli Knesset in an 80-13 vote on October 15.
US President Donald Trump made the announcement at the White House with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Sudan’s Sovereignty Council chairman Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok on the phone with him.
But Palestine has slammed these peace deals, saying they were a “new stab in the back of the Palestinian people”.
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