Arab-Israeli Relations

Video

The UAE-Israel Breakthrough: Bilateral and Regional Implications and U.S. Policy

Former diplomats and experts discuss what steps each party should take after the historic White House signing ceremony, and how to bring the Palestinians and other actors into the fold.

Sep 14, 2020

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Ebtesam al-Ketbi
Dore Gold
Barbara A. Leaf
David Makovsky

Policy Analysis on Arab-Israeli Relations

Brief Analysis

“The Holocaust Was an Arab Story Too”: Holocaust Remembrance in the Arab World المحرقة كانت قصة عربية أيضاً: إحياء ذكرى "الهولوكوست" في العالم العربي

The Washington Institute’s executive director reflects on this year’s wave of remembrance events in the region, including his remarks at two landmark programs in Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

Jan 28, 2022

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Robert Satloff

Police respond to a terrorist hostage-taking at a Texas synagogue - source: Reuters

Articles & Testimony

Synagogue Hostage Crisis Reminds Us That Neo-Nazis Aren’t the Only Ones Targeting Jews

Although domestic extremism has emerged as a bigger homeland terrorist threat, the threat of jihadi violence from abroad remains acute.

Jan 19, 2022

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Matthew Levitt

Photo of Naftali Bennett and Abdul Fattah al-Sisi meeting in Sharm al-Sheikh.

Brief Analysis

Israeli Coalition Leaders Navigate Protests and Political Constraints

With their constituents upping the pressure on hot-button factional issues, Prime Minister Bennett and Mansour Abbas are starting to feel the vulnerabilities inherent in their still-fragile coalition.

Jan 14, 2022

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David Makovsky

Israeli Prime Minister Bennett meets with the UAE's foreign minister in December 2021 - Source: Reuters

Brief Analysis

Bennett Visit Shows the UAE Balancing Between Israeli Ties and Regional De-escalation

The meeting confirmed how eager both countries are to keep their economic progress humming along, but such cooperation could become complicated if concerns about Iran’s nuclear program come to a head.

Dec 16, 2021

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David Makovsky

Brief Analysis

Gulf Arab Summit Could Be Overshadowed by Israel-UAE Meeting

Normalization with Israel will be the elephant in the room at the Riyadh summit, though Iran diplomacy and persistent internal rifts bear close watching as well.

Dec 13, 2021

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Simon Henderson
Elana DeLozier

An Emirati family relaxes on the shore in Dubai

Articles & Testimony

The UAE’s Second Half-Century: Building Forward to What?

The country is well-positioned to further the progress it has made on multiple fronts, from balancing relations with competing regional and global powers, to diversifying its economy and addressing long-term environmental concerns.

Dec 2, 2021

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David Pollock

President Jimmy Carter, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin shake hands at the White House as the Camp David Accords are announced.

Video

Brief Analysis

American Peace Process Diplomacy: What Works? What Doesn’t?

The authors of three recent books on Henry Kissinger, Jimmy Carter, and James Baker explore the lessons that today’s leaders can learn from their landmark peacemaking efforts.

Nov 30, 2021

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Martin Indyk
Stuart Eizenstat
Susan Glasser

Biden, Jordan's King Abdullah, Crown Prince Hussein

In-Depth Reports

Preparing for Orderly Change in Jordan When the Time Comes

Sudden Succession Essay Series

The kingdom has navigated tricky successions in the past, and many of the elements that allowed it to do so remain in place today.

Nov 22, 2021

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Ghaith al-Omari

Brief Analysis

UAE to Fund Israel and Jordan’s Solar/Water Deal

The trilateral agreement will combine long-established peace partners with one of the Gulf parties to last year’s Abraham Accords, providing a model for broader normalization efforts.

Nov 18, 2021

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Ghaith al-Omari
Simon Henderson

Israeli Prime Minister Bennett meets US officials in Washington

Articles & Testimony

How Israel Should Navigate the New American Landscape

America’s broad inclination toward retrenchment is unlikely to abate anytime soon, but Israeli leaders can still do much to remind Washington why basic regional stability is so essential to its interests.

Nov 9, 2021

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Dennis Ross

Articles & Testimony

Why a Political Comeback for Israel’s Netanyahu Just Became a Lot Less Likely

By passing a budget, avoiding fatal polarization, and toning down the rhetoric (if not the military pressure) on Iran, the young coalition government may have marginalized the former leader for the long term.

Nov 5, 2021

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Neri Zilber

In-Depth Reports

A Blurred Line Between Civil Society and Terrorism Examining Charges of NGOs Funding the PFLP

The Israeli evidence could reveal a troubling reality wherein groups publicly defend the human rights of some people while supporting acts of terrorism targeting others.

Nov 4, 2021

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Matthew Levitt

Articles & Testimony

Saudi Arabia: What Has Changed, What Hasn’t

An expert discusses persistent questions about Saudi policy two decades since the September 11 attacks, explaining why some of them are still so difficult to answer definitively.

Oct 13, 2021

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Simon Henderson

Maps & Graphics

Brief Analysis

Sabereen News Calls for Beheading of Iraqi Citizens

Militia Spotlight

After the Erbil conference, which called for normalizing ties between Iraq and Israel, the largest resistance social media organ called for beheadings and then tried to cover its tracks.

Oct 3, 2021

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Hamdi Malik

U.S., Israeli, Bahraini, and Qatari flags on a mural celebrating the Abraham Accords

Articles & Testimony

Think Regionally: A US Role for Deepening the Abraham Accords

Washington should look to economic forums in other regions as a model for establishing regular cooperation between Arab and Israeli officials, business leaders, academics, and civil society groups.

Oct 3, 2021

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David Makovsky
Josh Kram

Iraqi Kurds display Kurdish and Israeli flags

Articles & Testimony

A Pro-Israel Summit in Erbil Breaks New Ground

At great personal risk, Iraqi civil society leaders gathered to demand entry into the Abraham Accords, and their efforts need more American support.

Sep 30, 2021

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Dennis Ross

Brief Analysis

The Bennett-Sisi Meeting: A Rare Chance to Publicly Boost Relations

The welcome visit indicates that Egypt-Israel ties can thrive post-Netanyahu, potentially expanding from the security domain to economic and civil affairs.

Sep 13, 2021

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Haisam Hassanein

Brief Analysis

UAE-Israel Gas Deal (Finally) Finalized

Given ongoing environmental concerns over energy cooperation, the chances that the two partners will fully realize their commercial potential are still up in the air.

Sep 3, 2021

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Simon Henderson

Brief Analysis

A Missed Opportunity in America’s Refunding of UNRWA

Washington could have used the agency’s financial straits as an opportunity to prevent misuse of funds, compel textbook revisions, and identify individuals on its rolls who actually meet the UNHCR definition of a refugee.

Sep 2, 2021

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James G. Lindsay

Brief Analysis

Last Call for Gaza? Proposing an Alternative to Israeli-Palestinian “Conflict Management”

With Iran looming ever larger as Israel’s top security priority, the window for breaking the dangerous cycle of ceasefire and conflagration with the Palestinians may be closing—unless all of the actors are willing to throw their weight behind a fresh “4x4” strategy.

Aug 30, 2021

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Dror Shalom

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Featured experts

Ghaith al-Omari

Ghaith al-Omari is a senior fellow in The Washington Institute's Irwin Levy Family Program on the U.S.-Israel Strategic Relationship.

Mohammed Dajani

Mohammed S. Dajani Daoudi is the former Weston Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and is Director of the Wasatia Academic Institute in Jerusalem.

Michael Herzog

Michael Herzog was appointed Israel's ambassador to the United States in 2021. Previously, he was an international fellow at The Washington Institute.