Bahrain and Israel ties: US envoy to join first direct flight

Following the landmark Abraham Accords, Israel and Bahrain discuss commercial ties

Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, from left, US President Donald Trump, Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, Bahrain's foreign affairs minister, and Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al NahyShow more

President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Avi Berkowitz, will lead a US delegation to Bahrain and Israel this week to discuss expanded economic co-operation between the two countries, a senior White House official said on Monday.

Mr Berkowitz, part of a team led by Mr Trump's senior adviser Jared Kushner to help negotiate the Bahrain-Israel deal, will join Bahraini officials on the first-ever direct commercial flight from Bahrain to Israel.

The flight on Wednesday will depart Manama and arrive in Tel Aviv, where the US and Bahraini delegations will participate in meetings with senior Israeli officials.

The Trump administration has helped broker normalisation deals between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan.

Mr Trump's national security adviser Robert O'Brien told the Global Security Forum on Monday that he hoped the incoming administration of Democrat Joe Biden, should he be certified as the winner of the November 3 presidential election, would pursue more such deals between Israel and Arab nations.

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