The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Wednesday formally opened its embassy in Israel, a week after Jerusalem opened its own embassy in Abu Dhabi.
The move comes almost a year after the two countries normalized diplomatic ties as part of the Trump-led Abraham Accords.
New Israeli President Isaac Herzog joined a ceremony for inauguration of the embassy, which is in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange building, and called it an “important step for the entire Middle East.”
“To see the Emirati flag in the skies of Tel Aviv would have seemed a distant dream. Today it is a reality,” Herzog said.
He also expressed his hope that more alliances would be formed with countries in the region.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog (C) and Emirati Ambassador to Israel Mohamed al-Khaja (C-R), Emirati Minister of State for Food and Water Security Mariam al-Muhairi and former minister Gabi Ashkenazi, open the Israeli stock market in Tel Aviv on July 14, 2021 in the same building of the new UAE embassy. (JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)
“This blessed process cannot stop,” he said. “In my recent telephone conversations with leaders of the region, I again understand that we have more partners and allies in this mission than we thought.”
UAE Ambassador Mohammad Mahmoud Al Khajah said: “It is a great honor to open the embassy here. Ten months ago our two countries signed the Abraham Accords with a vision of dignity, prosperity and peace for the two peoples.”
He added: “This is just the beginning. Both countries are innovative nations and we will harness these new approaches for the prosperity of the countries.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog (L) and Emirati Ambassador to Israel Mohamed al-Khaja shake hands outside the new UAE embassy in Tel Aviv on July 14, 2021. (JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)
The decision to establish ties between the two countries sparked outrage among the Palestinian leadership, which called it a “stab in the back.”
In a closed-door meeting with a bipartisan congressional delegation this week, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas again demanded that the normalization agreements with Arab and Muslim states not be developed further until the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was solved.
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