The agreements Israel is set to sign with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, respectively, will not go into effect until after receiving government approval, Israeli media reported on Monday.
The information comes from a letter written by the prime minister's office legal adviser, Shlomit Barnea-Fargo, which came in response to recent allegations that contents of the agreements had yet to presented and approved by the government.
In her letter, she wrote that even the Prime Minister's Office understands that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not the authority to sign the agreement alone, and that the agreement will only enter in effect with retroactive approval from the government.
Barnea-Fargo's letter came in response to a letter written by the lawyer Gilad Barnea, who on Saturday sent a letter to Alternate Prime Minister and Defense Minister Benny Gantz, Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, Justice Minister Avi Nissenkorn and Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit. In it, he claimed that the agreement with the UAE had not been approved by the government nor in the cabinet, and had not yet been presented to the Knesset as is required.
"The prime minister alone is not authorized to sign this agreement, and to pretend to obligate the State of Israel," Barnea-Fargo wrote.
Barnea-Fargo clarified the issue with the prime minister's secretary Tzachi Braverman, and on Monday replied, rejecting the allegations and explained that the agreement would actually go into effect retroactively once the government had given approval.
"The agreement, which is due to be signed this week, will explicitly state that it will not enter into effect on the date of its signing and will be brought before the government for approval in accordance with the government's regulations," the reply letter read.
"In light of the importance of the agreement, the Prime Minister intends to propose to the government that it also be approved by the Knesset," she added.