Israel seeks peace deals with Arab countries – Netanyahu

The prime minister plans to expand the Abraham Accords after resolving the conflicts with Hamas and Hezbollah

Israel plans to pursue peace agreements with Arab countries after its military goals are achieved in Gaza and Lebanon, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the parliament on Monday.

The remarks come two days after Israel launched a flurry of strikes on Iranian military facilities on Saturday, in retaliation for Tehran’s missile barrage on the Jewish state earlier this month. Iran cited a string of assassinations of senior Hezbollah officials, including longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah, as the reason for the attack.

“The day after Hamas no longer controls Gaza and Hezbollah no longer sits on our northern border, we are working these days on plans to stabilize those two fronts. But the day after includes something else of utmost importance,” Netanyahu said in a speech in the Knesset.

After these goals are accomplished, he stated, Israel will continue peace efforts in the region “with the signing of the historic Abraham Accords, in order to achieve peace with other Arab countries.”

Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged fire since the Jewish state launched its military operation in Gaza in response to Hamas’ surprise attack against Israel on October 7 last year. Israel escalated its campaign against the Shiite militant group in September, launching Operation Northern Arrows to attack Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.

Read more

“These countries and other countries see very well the blows we inflict on those who attack us, the Iranian axis of evil,” he added.

The US-brokered Abraham Accords announced in 2020 normalized Israel’s relations with Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Morocco. They sought to promote “friendly relations among states,” an end to “radicalization,” and a “culture of peace” through “interfaith and intercultural dialogue.”

Since then, Israel, with the support of the US, has sought to expand the accords to include other Middle Eastern countries, particularly with Saudi Arabia.

In a speech at the UN General Assembly in September, Netanyahu said that “a normalization deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel seemed closer than ever” before the war with Hamas broke out.

Riyadh, which was open to forging closer ties with Israel before the start of the offensive in Gaza, now insists that any diplomatic pact depends on Israel’s acceptance of a Palestinian state – a prospect rejected by Netanyahu’s government.