Bahrain's Undersecretary for International Relations at the Foreign Ministry Dr. Shaikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa landed in Israel on Sunday, for a four-day trip aimed at deepening relations between the countries.
Al Khalifa is expected to meet with Foreign Minister Yair Lapid and President Isaac Herzog.
In addition, Al Khalifa and Foreign Ministry Director-General Alon Ushpiz will prepare for an eventual meeting between Lapid and Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, under the auspices of a high steering committee for relations between Bahrain and Israel which they lead and will meet this week.
The Bahraini official is also expected to meet with the Foreign Ministry’s Cadets Course, to discuss Israel-Bahrain relations, and to visit Israeli civil society organizations and think tanks as part of his goal to strengthen ties between the countries.
Official diplomatic relations between Israel and Bahrain were announced on September 11, 2020, in the framework of the Abraham Accords, after years of mostly behind-the-scenes ties.
Al Khalifa also holds the positions of deputy secretary-general of the Supreme Defense Council and undersecretary for political affairs at the Foreign Ministry in Bahrain and is in charge of the Israel portfolio at the ministry. He paid two visits to Israel in December 2020, once with Bahrain's Foreign Minister and once with the Minister of Economy and Tourism.
The undersecretary's official biography says that he is "a fierce advocate for Bahrain's historical tradition of tolerance, especially for Bahrain's indigenous Jewish and Christian communities."