i24 News – White House officials recently castigated senior members of the Palestinian Authority after the life of a prominent.
Friday’s encounter on the east Mediterranean island was attended by Anwar Gargash, a former UAE foreign minister who worked on the historic normalization of relations with Israel last year. He was there in his capacity as diplomatic advisor to UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed.
“The Abrahamic accords were mainly driven by the necessity of an alternative strategic view of the region based on stability, prosperity and opportunity,” Gargash said.
Discussions in Cyprus, he said, focussed on ways to enhance joint action in facing the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, medical research and the distribution of vaccines, as well as energy security in the region.
Let s shake narrative of bickering Middle East, say former foes Reuters 1 hr ago
PAPHOS, Cyprus, April 16 (Reuters) - Israel, the UAE, Greece and Cyprus said they would seek to deepen their cooperation in fields ranging from energy to fighting COVID, saying budding ties could change the face of a region more synonymous with conflict. The evolving web of regional cooperation is creating a new narrative, one that is cracking the glass ceiling of the prevailing (one) of our neighbourhood as a region of turmoil, conflict and crisis, said Cypriot Foreign Minister and host Nikos Christodoulides.
The UAE and fellow Gulf state Bahrain in September became the first Arab states in a quarter of a century to sign agreements to establish formal ties with Israel, forged largely through shared fears of Iran.
U.S. prods Israel to provide more water to Jordan
Antony Blinken. Photo: Alex Edelman/Pool/AFP via Getty
The Biden administration has encouraged Israel to agree to a Jordanian request for additional water, Israeli officials tell me.
Why it matters: Israeli-Jordanian relations have recently sunk into a new crisis after a period of slow improvement, and the water supply is another point of tension.
The backstory: Israel has committed under past agreements to supply Jordan with water. Every year, Jordan asks for an additional amount, and Israel typically agrees right away.
Driving the news: But when a joint water committee met last month and the Jordanians asked for additional water, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not immediately consent.
Published date: 7 April 2021 19:24 UTC | Last update: 4 sec ago
The United States will restore $235m in humanitarian aid to Palestinians halted by former President Donald Trump, including funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), the State Department said on Wednesday.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the aid would comply with US law. Over the past few years, Congress has passed legislation that restricts assistance to the Palestinian Authority. US foreign assistance for the Palestinian people serves important US interests and values. It provides critical relief to those in great need, fosters economic development, and supports Israeli-Palestinian understanding, security coordination and stability, Blinken said in a statement on Wednesday.
Blinken stresses Palestinians rights in call to Israeli counterpart
“The secretary emphasised the administration’s belief that Israelis and Palestinians should enjoy equal measures of freedom, security, prosperity, and democracy,” said Ned Price
Saturday 03/04/2021
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at the State Department in Washington, Tuesday, March 30, 2021. (AP)
WASHINGTON – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Israeli counterpart on Friday that Israelis and Palestinians should enjoy “equal measures” of freedom, security, prosperity and democracy.
Blinken’s comments reflected more of a focus on the Palestinians than the pro-Israel policy conducted by US President Joe Biden’s Republican predecessor, Donald Trump.