Bennett Receives Invitation to Visit UAE

Mohamed Al Khaja, the UAE's Ambassador to Israel, hands an invitation to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to visit the country. (Mohamed Al Khaja's Twitter)
Mohamed Al Khaja, the UAE's Ambassador to Israel, hands an invitation to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to visit the country. (Mohamed Al Khaja's Twitter)
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Bennett Receives Invitation to Visit UAE

Mohamed Al Khaja, the UAE's Ambassador to Israel, hands an invitation to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to visit the country. (Mohamed Al Khaja's Twitter)
Mohamed Al Khaja, the UAE's Ambassador to Israel, hands an invitation to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to visit the country. (Mohamed Al Khaja's Twitter)

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced on Tuesday that he received an invitation letter from Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to visit the United Arab Emirates.

The invitation was extended by UAE Ambassador to Tel Aviv Mohamed Al Khaja on behalf of the Crown Prince during a meeting at the PM’s office in Jerusalem.

The meeting was attended by Bahraini Ambassador Khalid Al Jalahma.

Bennett and the ambassadors discussed means of expanding ties between Israel and the two Gulf States, in addition to regional cooperation and strengthening the Abraham Accords.

"The stronger the bond between our countries, the stronger the security and stability in the entire region,” the Israeli PM said.

Al Khaja was appointed the UAE's first ambassador to Israel in February.

On Monday, the foreign ministers of Israel, the United Arab Emirates, India and the US held a meeting to bolster coordination.

The office of Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said the minister held a meeting with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in West Jerusalem, while US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan participated through a Zoom call.

Following the meeting, Lapid said he agreed with his counterparts to establish a forum for economic cooperation.

He tweeted that during the meeting, the ministers "decided to establish an international forum for economic cooperation."



Trump Heads on ‘Historic’ Gulf Tour

Saudi and US flags flutter on a main road in Riyadh on May 12, 2025, ahead of a visit by US President Donald Trump this week. (AFP)
Saudi and US flags flutter on a main road in Riyadh on May 12, 2025, ahead of a visit by US President Donald Trump this week. (AFP)
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Trump Heads on ‘Historic’ Gulf Tour

Saudi and US flags flutter on a main road in Riyadh on May 12, 2025, ahead of a visit by US President Donald Trump this week. (AFP)
Saudi and US flags flutter on a main road in Riyadh on May 12, 2025, ahead of a visit by US President Donald Trump this week. (AFP)

US President Donald Trump on Monday left for Saudi Arabia on what he called a "historic" tour of the Middle East that will mix urgent diplomacy on Gaza and Iran with huge business deals.

Air Force One took off on a journey that starts in Saudi Arabia and includes stops in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates -- and possibly talks in Türkiye on the Ukraine war.

Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza will hang heavy over the first major tour of Trump's second term -- but in one sign of progress, US-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander was handed over to the Red Cross just as the president boarded his plane.

"It's big news," Trump said at the White House shortly before departing. "He's coming home to his parents, which is really great news. They thought he was dead."

Trump has in recent weeks seemed to cool on his efforts to end the Gaza war -- despite boasting before taking office that he would be able to bring the conflict to a swift end.

Trump said there were "very good things happening" on talks between Washington and Tehran over Iran's nuclear ambitions -- though he added that Iran "can't have a nuclear weapon."

The US president said that he hoped for more developments on Gaza during his trip to the Gulf, noting that his tour involved "three primary countries" in the region.

Riyadh will host on Wednesday a Gulf-American summit as Trump visits the region.

The summit will bring together the US president with his counterparts from the Arab Gulf.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz sent on Sunday invitations to the leaders of Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman to attend the summit.