Israel celebrates its privileged relations with UAE amid Palestinian range
The United Arab Emirates ruling regime involvement in normalization with Israel is being celebrated in Israel, while there is a widespread rage among Palestinians.
The UAE has gone a long way in its official relations with the Israeli occupation state and has taken steps far from the countries that also normalize with Israel, headed by Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and even the Egypt, which has official relations with Israel.
Relations between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv have witnessed unprecedented progress in recent months, overtaking the secret and public diplomatic meetings and open trade and economic relations between the two sides on a regular basis, but reached joint military exercises.
The sky of the Greek “Indravida” base witnessed the largest joint military air exercises between the Israeli Air Force and the UAE. Pilots from the UAE and Israel participated in the “Iniohos 2019” exercise, which ended on April 12, with the participation of the United States, Italy, and Greece.
The Hebrew “Channel 12” published a report entitled “public normalization” highlighted the air exercises, which included conducting joint training and aviation. The report, which conducted interviews from inside the base with senior officers of the Greek and Israeli air forces, said that joint exercises by the Israeli and UAE air forces were activities that were not public.
The report added: “Who believes that pilots from the UAE and Israel participate in a joint exercise, and train side by side!” Colonel Amir, commander of the Israeli air base Ramat David, revealed that the commander of one of the squadrons in the Israeli Air Force went after the combat task to Emirati pilots and shaken hands with all of them.
The aim of the joint exercise, “Iniohos 2019”, is to improve the ability to coordinate the weaponry of the participating countries, to train on how to confront complex threats, and to enhance combat capabilities, the Jerusalem Post reported.
The Israeli-Emirati military exercise triggered a high level of Palestinian range, amid accusations that the UAE played a suspicious role in stabbing the Palestinian cause from the back, and encouraging the occupation of its crimes and killing the Palestinians.
“The UAE and its officials have sold out the entire Palestinian cause and officially headed towards the occupying state to establish political, economic, cultural and military relations,” said Sheikh Kamal al-Khatib, deputy head of the Islamic Movement inside the occupied Palestinian territories in 1948.
Khatib stressed that full normalization with Israel has become the main goal of the Arab and Gulf countries, especially the UAE and what we are witnessing these days, mutual visits and praise through the media, as well as military exercise, is part of the larger plan to consider Israel as a friend and a non-enemy ally.
“The UAE, Saudi Arabia, and other normalizing countries do not want the Palestinian cause to remain an obstacle to achieve their goal of embracing Israel, so they have begun to resort to other ways in which the Palestinian cause is bypassed and swept to reach their ambitions of full normalization,” Khateeb adds.
He continues: “Whoever helps the occupation state, he contributes to its support to remain in our occupied land, and strengthens its army and settlers in the profanation of holy sites and attacks on the Palestinians by burning, killing and beatings and stealing their property and rights.”
The deputy head of the Islamic Movement in the occupied homeland said that the UAE plays a “dubious role, which constitutes a real threat to Palestine and its cause,” in light of its unprecedented and surprising rapprochement in all fields with the Israeli occupation state, describing military exercises as “shame and betrayal from UAE and its officials.”
Hamas leader Sami Abu Zuhri described the military exercises, in which the UAE and Israel participated, as painful and shocking.
“The joint maneuver in Greece between the UAE and Israeli forces is painful and shocking,” he said in a tweet. “This is a big shame and support for murderers, and a great stab for the nation and the Palestinian people. “
This is the third time that pilots from the UAE and Israel participated in joint air maneuvers.
The United Arab Emirates and Israel have already participated in an international air exercise organized in the United States called the “Red Flag” hosted by the US Air Force in August 2016, as well as participating in another aerial exercise organized in Greece two years ago.
“All forms of normalization with Israel, whether political, military or technical, without practical and just solutions to the Palestinian issue, is a blow to the national project and a strengthening of the Israeli occupation,” said Rabah Muhanna, a member of the Political Bureau of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
He adds that the Palestinians reject all forms of normalization with the occupying state because it is an entrance to reduce the Palestinian cause and beautify the image of the ugly occupation in the Arab region.
Muhanna stressed that normalization and making secret agreements and military exercise with Israel is a reward from the Arab countries to this occupier encouraging Israel to continue his aggression against the Palestinians and their rights and sanctities. He called on the Arab countries to support Palestine not to stab it from the back.
The joint military exercise comes in the light of the harmony of positions between the UAE and the Israeli occupation state, as recently witnessed an exchange of visits between officials in Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi.
The UAE Foreign Minister, Abdullah bin Zayed, has claimed the Israeli government’s “right” to defend itself against threats from Iran and Hezbollah, which Arab states consider them key sponsors of terrorism in the region.
A few days ago, Channel 13 revealed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had telephoned Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed to coordinate in order to counter Iran’s nuclear program.
