2 February 2022
Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz has arrived in Bahrain on an unannounced visit amid heightened tensions in the Gulf after missile attacks on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by Yemen’s Houthi movement.
Announcing Gantz’s trip only after his arrival in Manama, Israel’s Defence Ministry said on Wednesday he would sign a security cooperation agreement with Bahrain, which along with the neighbouring UAE normalised relations with Israel in 2020.
In disclosing Gantz’s official visit, the Israeli defence ministry made no mention of the Houthi attacks nor gave details of what a security accord with Bahrain, home to the US Navy’s main base in the Gulf, would include.
Gantz flew to Bahrain on an Israeli air force transport plane. It was the first time an Israeli defence chief had visited the Gulf nation or that an Israeli military aircraft had landed there.
In September, Bahrain hosted Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid for the highest-level visit since the normalisation deals were reached.
Forces from the UAE, Bahrain, Israel and the US Naval Forces Central Command held a naval exercise in the Red Sea in November.
Israel said such military cooperation could help counter Iran’s “power projection” in the region.
Source Aljazeera
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