Bahraini Ambassador Khaled Al Jalahma landed in Ben-Gurion Airport on Tuesday to take up his new post, in what his Foreign Ministry described as another “milestone” in deepening the ties between the two countries.
“A historic journey in the making accompanied by my wife. We are both very excited!” Jalahma tweeted. He posted photographs of their descent from the airplane to the tarmac.
“The opportunity to fulfill His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa’s vision of peaceful coexistence with all nations is a privilege that I will hold in high regard,” Jalahma tweeted.
I am honored to announce that I will be arriving in Tel Aviv today to begin my post as #Bahrain’s first Ambassador to #Israel.
— Khaled Al Jalahma (@BahrainAmbIsr) August 31, 2021
Israel normalized ties with Bahrain in 2020, under the rubric of the Abraham Accords brokered by the Trump administration. The United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan also normalized ties with Israel.
The UAE sent its first ambassador to Israel, Mohamed Al Khaja, to Tel Aviv in March.
Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry said that Jalahma’s arrival marked “an important step in developing the bilateral relations between the two countries and their peoples, which has been a priority” for the foreign ministers of both countries.
“The Bahraini Embassy in Israel, as well as the Israeli Embassy in Bahrain, have a central role in the strengthening of the bilateral relations and serve as yet another milestone of the vision of the peace accords signed in 2020,” the Bahraini Foreign Ministry said.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat tweeted the same message. Haiat stated, “We are looking forward to what will no doubt be a very productive tenure, advancing relations between our two countries.”