- Iranians holding Ashura mourning for Imam Hussein
- Third step: Iran officially informs EU of plan to expand nuclear R&D
- Iran expands nuclear R&D program: Rouhani
- Iran goes ahead in space tech, despite US sanctions: ISA
- Resistance Front undermining Israeli regime power: Top commander
- Iran: 7 crew members of detained UK ship freed
- US addiction to sanction threaten its power: Iran’s Zarif
- Dutch role in 2007 Stuxnet attack on Iran’s nuclear site under scrutiny: Iraian FM Spox.
- Iran: ‘Sustainable Security 2019’ kicks off in Caspian Sea
- Iran’s Zarif leaves Tehran for Moscow
- Shiraz University ranked 1st in liver transplantation: Iranian health official
- Japan’s Abe to meet Iran’s president to discuss easing tension in region
- Downing of US spy drone shattered war threats against Iran: Top IRGC commander
- IAEO head reports development of first ion-therapy hospital in west of Asia
- Iranian Taekwondo team wins 2019 World Cup championship
- US sanctions failed to force Iran to buckle: Report
- Crew fixing Iran oil tanker broken down in Red Sea
- As Iranians hold nerves, US seeks to scare off trade
- Leader expresses concern about Kashmir, urges India to follow fair policy toward Muslim-majority region
- Iran saffron exports down due to smuggling, government restrictions: Exporter
- Iran FM warns US against ‘serious miscalculation’ in Persian Gulf
- Iran’s resistance policy led to release of oil tanker: MP
- Iran in reverse brain drain as top students come home in rising numbers
- Iran official calls for compensation for tanker seizure
- Iran hails N Korea for standing against ‘unilateral’ US demands
- Shia Muslims celebrate Eid Al-Ghadir
- North Korea praises Iran’s anti-US struggle
- Zarif says to meet French president Friday
- Iranian court hearing case of UK oil tanker
- Over half of Japanese voters oppose joining US-led anti-Iran coalition in Persian Gulf: Poll
- IME trade ups by 21 percent in July
- Finland backs INSTEX in defiance of US
- US anti-Iran policy in high seas harms Europeans: LA Times
- Iran, China confer on Syria
- Iran, Finland share views on Persian Gulf dialogue forum: Zarif
- Iran warns US against seizure of oil tanker
- Iraq eager to benefit from Iranian Police’s experience
- Iran planning 3rd step to reduce nuclear commitments: Spokesman
- Leader grants clemency to over 1,000 Iranian inmates
- Registration for Arbaeen Pilgrimage to begin in Iran on Friday
- Iran, Iraq agree to reopen Khosravi border crossing
- Iran deplores suicide attack at Kabul wedding hall
- Iran to hold int'l hand-woven carpets expo
- Zarif meets with Iran-Kuwait Friendship Group members
- Adrian Darya oil tanker not under any sanctions, says Iran envoy
- ‘Iran to stay in nuclear deal as long as its interests are met’
- India envoy happy with positive trend of trade with Iran
- Iran’s annual export of white meat tops 2.5m tons: Minister
- Iranian scientist discovers new state of matter
- Iran, Japan diplomats discuss bilateral ties
- Iran, Ansarullah, European representatives Yemen developments
- ‘Iran to become self-sufficient in producing aircraft engines'
- US issues seizure warrant for Iranian supertanker 'Grace 1'
- Neanderthal tooth unearthed near Iran’s Zagros mountain
- Iran’s Zarif due in Kuwait on Saturday
- US faces humiliating defeat after Gibraltar releases Iranian tanker: Envoy
- Spokesman rejects claim on Iran’s commitment in exchange for tanker release
- Zarif reacts to release of Iranian tanker in Gibraltar
- Israel, UAE engaged in secret talks on Iran arranged by US: Report
- US threatens visa ban as Iranian-operated tanker sets to sail from Gibraltar
- Enemies must factor Iran's global power in their calculations: IRGC's chief commander
- Trump’s administration conflicting messages to Iran baffle go-betweens: Report
- Gibraltar releases Iran-operated tanker despite US pressure
Friday, 27 November 2020 (YJC) _Jerusalem post claims Israel-Saudi-UAE alliance sends signal to Biden to tread lightly with Iran.
The message Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s spokeswoman Shir Cohen sent to journalists on Saturday night seemed innocuous enough.
“In order for minister [Ze’ev] Elkin and Izhar Shay to complete their work on digital means [to trace the spread of COVID-19], including the legal aspects connected to the matter, the coronavirus cabinet will be postponed to Monday,” it read.
Those especially familiar with the statements coming out of the Prime Minister’s Office may have noted that there was something fishy about this one, in that it gave more advance notice and was more forthcoming than usual. But it wasn’t enough to raise much suspicion beyond grumbling about coronavirus policy.
It later became apparent that the statement was a cover story for something much more dramatic.
At about 5 p.m. on Sunday, a private jet belonging to Israeli businessman Udi Angel took off from Ben-Gurion Airport and landed in Neom, Saudi Arabia, a new city on the shores of the Red Sea meant to show off the Kingdom’s hi-tech capabilities. It returned to Israel shortly after midnight.
Several hours later, the news broke: Netanyahu had met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
There was no official announcement, but between the different Israeli media outlets and their sources, plus a couple of foreign outlets citing Saudi sources, as well, a picture started to form.
Netanyahu and MBS, as the crown prince is known, met for a few hours. They discussed Iran and the possibility of normalization between their countries, but did not make any major decisions.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry denied that MBS met with any Israeli officials together with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who was reportedly present, as well. But they did not deny outright that there had been any meeting with Israelis.
The fact that this meeting took place is big news. Israel and Saudi Arabia have no diplomatic relations. The Saudis twice, in 1948 and 1973, sent troops to help other Arab countries wage war on Israel, and now the heir to the Saudi throne is meeting with the prime minister of Israel.
Of course, much has changed since then, the key shift being that Israel and Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states are on the same side of a division in the Middle East; they’re all threatened by Iran.
That is the backdrop against which the Abraham Accords were signed, and against which there is a fair chance that normalizations between Arab states and Israel will continue.
When the US was negotiating the Iran deal, it became an open secret in Washington that Israel’s and the UAE’s ambassadors were working together to try to convince the Obama administration to get tougher on Tehran and stop its nuclear program.
Source: jpost
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