Israel-UAE relations

President Isaac Herzog meets his new UAE counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan to pay his condolences on the passing of the Gulf state's late leader Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, May 15, 2022. (President's Office)

May 15, 2022, 10:11 pm

Herzog, ministers meet new UAE leader during condolence visit to Abu Dhabi

President hails his counterpart Mohamed bin Zayed for normalizing ties with Israel: ‘Together we will advance and strengthen the prosperous ties of peace’

By TOI staff and Agencies

President Isaac Herzog meets with then-Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi on January 30, 2022. (Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO)

May 14, 2022, 11:56 pm

Herzog to represent Israel at funeral of late UAE leader

President to meet new Abu Dhabi ruler ‘alongside other leaders’ during brief trip to Gulf state; Lapid congratulates MBZ on selection as president

By TOI staff

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of the United Arab Emirates at the presidential palace, in Ankara, Turkey, on November 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici, File)

May 14, 2022, 2:05 pm

Crown prince, longtime de facto ruler Mohamed bin Zayed elected UAE president

Succeeds half-brother Sheikh Khalifa day after his death; MBZ led push for Gulf nation’s normalization with Israel

By Agencies and TOI staff

Rabbi Elie Abadie says a blessing as he hosts a lunch for a Jewish business delegation at a villa that serves as a temporary synagogue for his congregation in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, May 10, 2022. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)

May 11, 2022, 5:16 pm

Despite normalization with Israel, plans for Dubai synagogue at a standstill

Fast-growing Jewish community is running up against series of hurdles in the Gulf, where non-Muslim practice is tightly controlled and permits for religious buildings are limited

By Isabel Debre

Amir Hayek, Israel's ambassador to the UAE, speaks at a Memorial Day ceremony in Abu Dhabi, May 3, 2022. (Courtesy of the Israel Foreign Ministry Spokesperson)

May 4, 2022, 4:29 pm

Israel Memorial Day ceremony held in Abu Dhabi, in first for any Arab country

Event led by Amir Hayek, Israel’s ambassador to the UAE, who says he was brought to tears of ‘sadness, hope and emotion’

By Michael Horovitz

The opening roundtable begins at the Negev Summit, as Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, clockwise from left, makes opening remarks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, United Arab Emirates' Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Morocco's Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, and Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid al-Zayani, March 28, 2022, in Sde Boker. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)

May 3, 2022, 4:53 pm

As Israel, US prep for Biden visit, second regional forum reportedly being weighed

US president expected in late June; according to Axios, White House looking to build on ties forged during March’s Negev Summit, though plans are not concrete

By TOI staff and Jacob Magid

Jordan's King Abdullah II, Egyptian President Abdel-Fatteh el-Sissi and United Arab Emirates Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan meeting in Cairo, Egypt, on April 24. 2022. (Royal Hashemite Court)

April 24, 2022, 9:55 pm

At Cairo summit, leaders of Jordan, Egypt, UAE discuss Jerusalem tensions

Following clashes on Temple Mount, leaders stress ‘readiness to exert all efforts to restore calm in Jerusalem’; call for renewed diplomatic efforts along two-state solution

By TOI staff

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid (R) welcomes his Emirati counterpart Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan at Sde Boker in southern Israel, on March 27, 2022, ahead of the Negev Summit. (Jack Guez/AFP)

April 21, 2022, 12:02 pm

Emirati FM tells Lapid he welcomes Israel’s steps to calm tensions in Jerusalem

Day after UAE summoned Israeli ambassador for rebuke, foreign minister tells al Nahyan that nations must keep working to promote peace between Israel and Middle Eastern Arabs

By Carrie Keller-Lynn and Jacob Magid

Palestinians seen on the holy month of Ramadan at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound atop the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, on April 17, 2022. (Jamal Awad/Flash90)

April 20, 2022, 9:12 pm

Senior Israeli diplomat takes Jordan to task for harsh Temple Mount criticism

Official says Jerusalem willing to tolerate Amman’s ‘double game’ but Jordanian PM crossed a line when he hailed Palestinian stone-throwers

By Jacob Magid

An Etihad Airways plane carrying a delegation from the United Arab Emirates on a first official visit lands at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, on October 20, 2020. (Jack Guez/AFP)

April 19, 2022, 10:30 pm

UAE pulls out of Independence Day flyby amid tensions over Temple Mount clashes

The original plan would have seen aircraft from Emirati Etihad Airways and Wizz Air Abu Dhabi soar alongside planes from Israeli airlines

By TOI staff

Masked Palestinians take positions during clashes with Israeli security forces at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, April 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

April 19, 2022, 9:53 pm

UAE summons Israeli envoy over ‘attacks on civilians, incursions into holy places’

As Abu Dhabi blasts Israeli response to Palestinian rioting on Temple Mount, Blinken holds marathon calls with Lapid, Abbas and Jordanian counterpart aimed at calming tensions

By Jacob Magid

An Emirati official stands near an El Al plane that carried a US-Israeli delegation to the UAE following a normalization accord, upon its arrival at the Abu Dhabi airport, in the first-ever direct flight from Israel to the UAE, on August 31, 2020. (KARIM SAHIB / AFP)

April 17, 2022, 10:18 pm

UAE to take part in Independence Day flyby for the first time

Participating alongside Israeli civil airlines will be two Emirati carriers, Ethihad Airways and Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, which will take off after showing military aircraft

By TOI staff

Palestinian protesters face off against Israeli security forces during clashes at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, atop the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City on April 15, 2022. (Jamal Awad/Flash90)

April 16, 2022, 5:09 pm

UAE, Bahrain, Morocco join condemnation of police actions at Temple Mount clashes

Gulf states slam ‘provocation to Muslims’ during Ramadan and underscore ‘need for self-restraint,’ after 185 injured in crackdown on rioting at Al-Aqsa mosque

By TOI staff

After meeting for the Negev Summit, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaks with United Arab Emirates' Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, on Monday, March 28, 2022, in Sde Boker, Israel. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)

April 14, 2022, 5:09 pm

UAE insists it welcomes regional initiatives that include Palestinians

After ToI reported Abu Dhabi is unenthusiastic about bringing PA into Abraham Accords, Emirati diplomat say his country is happy to work with US, Ramallah

By Lazar Berman and Jacob Magid

Ron Dermer, Israel's ambassador to the United States, speaks at an event in Detroit, on June 4, 2018. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya/File)

April 5, 2022, 3:00 pm

Former Israeli envoy to US Dermer joins Jerusalem investment firm Exigent Capital

Diplomat who helped broker Abraham Accords will help company expand partnerships in the Gulf and other regions

By Luke Tress