Israel’s Hadassah Medical Center, in West Jerusalem, is in talks with UAE officials to open a hospital in Dubai, announced the hospital’s head.
Political sources said that the director of the Hadassah Hospital, Zeev Rotstein, held several meetings with the UAE officials during his visit to Dubai last week, noting there is a desire for cooperation and exchange of experiences between the medical experts.
Rotstein hailed the offer to build a hospital in Dubai, but stressed negotiations were still at an early stage, describing it as “a revolution — to establish Hadassah Hospital as a medical power in the United Arab Emirates.”
He indicated that he would form a team to study the details of the proposal and provide suggestions on their implementation, including the exchange of doctors and researchers between Dubai and Jerusalem.
The Hadassah hospital is affiliated with the Hadassah organization, and is known as one of Israel’s best hospitals.
However, in recent years the medical center has been facing financial troubles, which were heightened during the coronavirus pandemic.
The hospital wrote a letter to the Israeli Finance and Health ministries on behalf of public hospitals, announcing there was a financial crisis in all public medical facilities, including Hadassah.
Meanwhile, sources in the Israeli Foreign Ministry reported that hundreds of Israeli businessmen and journalists have been in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, since the peace treaty was signed in mid-last month, except for politicians.
Although several deals, including political agreements, have been signed, no Israeli minister has entered the UAE, following a ban from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu informed the ministers who requested approval for their travel in order to advance relations, that he wants to be the first official to visit the UAE.
The directive came after several ministers showed interest in traveling to Abu Dhabi following the normalization deal, reported the Walla news site, citing three political resources. However, Netanyahu used his veto power and requested that such visiting programs be suspended until further notice.
Two weeks ago, Netanyahu and UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan agreed to meet in the near future.
The conversation was the first between the two since the agreement to normalize ties between the states was announced on August 13, and they agreed to meet “soon.”
