Which Asian, Muslim majority country could be the next country planning peace with Israel?
By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News
On Tuesday, Israel Hayom reported that a senior government official from a large Muslim-majority Asian country recently visited Israel, despite the two countries having no diplomatic relations.
In an Army Radio interview this week, Israeli Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen suggested that the country may be Indonesia. But Indonesia vehemently denied that it is in normalization talks with Israel, reported CNN.
So which Asian, Muslim majority country could be the next country planning peace with Israel?
Noor Dahri, founder of British think tank Islamic Theology of Counter Terrorism, says Pakistan is on the verge of a normalization agreement with the Jewish stare.
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“Good News for Pakistanis,” Dahri tweeted.
“Soon, I am going to disclose a recent secret but successful meeting between the Pakistani politician and Israeli politicians in Tel Aviv (Israel). I got the information from my Israeli friends of Intel department. Thank you, #Pakistan and #Israel.”
The background of the tweet included an image of a Pakistani passport, which reads “Valid for all countries of the world except Israel.”
“Openly, they [Pakistan] are telling its people we are not going forward without the establishment of a Palestinian state,” Dahri told the Jerusalem Post.
He likened the position to that of the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, as both countries had said they would never normalize with Israel before a Palestinian state was established.
But, said Dahri, due to the Iranian threat, Arab countries are ready to align themselves with Israel even with the Palestinian issue remaining unresolved.
“Saudi Arabia and the UAE generated pressure on Pakistan to normalize relations with Israel, as well as minimize relations with Turkey,” he said.
Many Pakistanis work abroad in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, as the country is reliant on the wealthy Gulf kingdom for a large portion of its economy. Currently, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are not issuing work visas for Pakistanis, putting a strain on the Pakistani economy.
“Both Arab countries [Saudi Arabia and the UAE] have asked Pakistan to stop its alliance with Turkey and normalize relations with Israel,” Dahri said.
“In return, Saudi Arabia will reinstate financial assistance” and the UAE would resume issuing visas, he said.
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