‘There’s an extraordinary relationship between the UAE and Israel,’ says US envoy to Israel
Streaks of light are seen as Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel, May 12. REUTERS
Israel sent Iron Dome air defence batteries and personnel to operate them in the United Arab Emirates during the war with Iran, the United States ambassador to Israel said on Tuesday.
“Can I say a word of appreciation, deep appreciation and admiration for the United Arab Emirates?” Mike Huckabee said during a conference at Tel Aviv University.
“They were the first Abraham Accords member but look at the benefits that they have had as a result. Israel just sent them Iron Dome batteries and personnel to help operate them. How come? Because there’s an extraordinary relationship between the UAE and Israel based on the Abraham Accords,” he said.
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The batteries, which typically include radars and missile launchers, were sent to the UAE to help it defend against Iranian attacks, a source briefed on the matter told Reuters.
There was no response from Abu Dhabi until 0900GMT regarding the claims by Huckabee.
The US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28, triggering retaliation from Tehran against Israel as well as US allies in the Gulf, along with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
More than 3,300 people were killed and tens of thousands displaced in Iran, while at least 13 US servicemen were killed and dozens of others wounded during the conflict.
A ceasefire took effect on April 8 through Pakistani mediation, but talks in Islamabad failed to produce a lasting agreement. The truce was later extended by Trump without a set deadline.
Iran targeted the UAE more than any other country during the war. Despite a ceasefire, the UAE has since reported multiple missile and drone attacks from Iran.
The oil-rich UAE is a top US ally in the region and among the Arab nations with official ties to Israel after signing the Abraham Accords during US President Donald Trump’s first term in 2020.
Israel has also supplied air defence systems to the UAE in the past. Senior Emirati official Anwar Gargash, an adviser to the country’s president, said on March 17 that Iranian attacks on its Arab neighbours would strengthen relations between Israel and those Arab states that have diplomatic ties with Israel.
West Bank attacks
Huckabee, speaking in Tel Aviv, was also asked about violent attacks carried out by Israelis against Christians in Jerusalem’s Old City and by Jewish settlers against Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
An Evangelical Christian who has long supported Israel, Huckabee responded that “terrorism is terrorism. It doesn’t matter who does it, it’s what is done that is the crime.”
Huckabee also said many of the Israelis committing violence in the West Bank, which he referred to as Judea and Samaria, the biblical name used by Israel’s government, did not live there.
He said that they may live in Tel Aviv, a city that is generally perceived as more liberal than other parts of the country. But after some in the crowd jeered, Huckabee added: “But they probably don’t”.
“But wherever they live, when they commit an act of terror or crime, then what they have done, I feel like, is a dishonour to the state of Israel and to the Jewish people, and it should be condemned,” he said, which was met with applause.
