Israel celebrates UAE’s National Day amid new peace joy

Netanyahu sent a greeting to His Highness, Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed, and reached out to “new friends.”

By SETH J. FRANTZMAN
The Gulf-Israel Women's Forum brings children draped in the flags of Bahrain, Israel and the UAE to Jerusalem's Old City. (photo credit: ISRAEL HADARI)
The Gulf-Israel Women's Forum brings children draped in the flags of Bahrain, Israel and the UAE to Jerusalem's Old City.
(photo credit: ISRAEL HADARI)
Israelis sent greetings to the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday as the Gulf country celebrates its national day.
It was an important message of peace, many said, reaching out to their neighbors in the region. It comes after an unprecedented month of visits, delegations, business deals and rapid expansion of flights.
Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met the first commercial flydubai flight, and this week he wished well the pilots of the first Israir flight going to Dubai. Some 50,000 people may make the trip this month on an estimated 300 flights, with some 60-100 flights a week being considered in the coming weeks and months.
The extraordinary expansion of this new trade and tourism route is blended with new messages of peace being put out by religious and cultural leaders. This will include new initiatives for museums and cultural centers, academic partnerships and coexistence.
The bridge is not only with Dubai and the UAE, but also with Bahrain, whose minister of industry, trade and tourism, Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani, came on Tuesday with 40 members of a delegation that will stay for several days. He met his Israeli counterparts. His visit followed the one by Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani, who came in the middle of November.  
Netanyahu sent a greeting to His Highness, Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Wednesday. He reached out to “new friends” and wished a joyous national day to the Emirates. He pointed to this as part of the fruits of peace and said it showed that the region could create a better future.
At the same time, Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Fleur Hassan-Nahoum also wrote about how she is looking forward to a future of friendship. Tel Aviv posted photos and celebrated with the UAE.
Key figures in the pro-Israel community, such as Michael Dickson of StandWithUS, posted about the national day. Public relations professional Avi Hyman wrote that he wishes his Emirati friends a happy national day. Lorena Khateeb from Israel’s Foreign Ministry posted a video of Israelis singing the UAE national anthem. Emily Schrader of Social Lite Creative also posted celebrating the day.
The outpouring of celebrations for another country’s national day is almost unprecedented in Israel. With the exception perhaps of the United States, few countries enjoy such widespread support on social media in the Jewish state. Israel’s digital diplomacy and strategic affairs experts have pushed a campaign to showcase the new peace deals, and the support and recognition for the national day are fruits of it.
It joins a massive buzz online for trips to Dubai, as well as various Facebook groups popping up that are devoted to every niche of trade that might be possible between Israel and the Emirates.