Which Arab state will be the next one to sign a normalization deal with Israel? According to a Yisrael Hayom report on Sunday morning, Israel is expecting agreements with Saudia Arabia and Oman in the near future. Mossad head Yossi Cohen said in closed conversations that a normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia is on the horizon, Channel 12 News reported on Sunday morning. Cohen added that Saudi Arabia is waiting until after the US election to make the agreement official. Other media reports, including Yisrael Hayom, quoted Israeli officials who said that an announcement is possible prior to the US election. Channel 12 News also reported on Sunday morning that US-supported normalization talks between Israel and Oman are likely to result in an agreement in the near future as well. That agreement will likely only be announced after the US elections. To date, it has been reported that although Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman is in favor of normalizing ties to Israel, his father, King Salman is opposed and has blocked any progression on a possible agreement. Apparently, the king has made a decision to withdraw his opposition. Nevertheless, according to all estimations, Saudia Arabia gave the go-ahead to the UAE and Bahrain to reach agreements with Israel, possibly due to the Gulf States’ interest in being part of a US-sponsored diplomatic-security bloc against Iran. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu referred to the new aviation options in light of the recent peace deals between Israel and Gulf states: “We’re changing the map of the Middle East. We will fly east, over Saudi Arabia to Bahrain and India, which will save a lot of time and money. Israel was isolated: We were told we were facing a diplomatic tsunami, and the exact opposite transpired. I am saying here and now — more countries will sign treaties with Israel.” We are changing the map of the Middle East. You can see it here. We are now flying to the east over Saudi Arabia to the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, India and the east. This saves hours and a lot of money, of course, for the flights. pic.twitter.com/E4XM4g1aas — PM of Israel (@IsraeliPM) October 24, 2020 Yesterday we took a step toward a historic peace between Israel and Sudan. I thank Chairman of the Sovereignty Council al-Burhan and Sudanese PM Hamdok for their historic decisions. Above all, I thank President @realDonaldTrump and his team with whom we are changing history. pic.twitter.com/wPsASK2cAL — PM of Israel (@IsraeliPM) October 24, 2020 (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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