Netanyahu Sends Top Aide to UAE to Repair Strained Ties

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dispatched his senior foreign-policy adviser to the United Arab Emirates in an effort to ease tensions that have grown since Israel’s campaign in Gaza and the recent acceleration of Jewish settlement building in the West Bank. The mission underscores concern in Jerusalem over a cooling of relations with Abu Dhabi, which in 2020 became the first Gulf state to normalise ties with Israel under the US-brokered Abraham Accords. Emirati officials have publicly criticised Israeli military operations and settlement policies, and have delayed some joint projects announced in the wake of the agreement. Israeli officials hope the visit will revive stalled economic and security cooperation with the oil-rich federation and prevent further diplomatic fallout as regional powers weigh Washington’s evolving Middle East strategy.