Amid escalating tensions with Saudi Arabia and several Arab and Muslim countries, the United Arab Emirates has moved to openly showcase its expanding relationship with Israel, staging a public display of alliance at a time when Abu Dhabi faces mounting legal and human rights pressure over its role in the wars in Sudan and Yemen and its wider regional involvement.
Observers viewed the Ramadan iftar hosted by the UAE ambassador in Tel Aviv as a fully fledged political platform carrying carefully crafted messages from both sides. The gathering, they argued, demonstrated the depth of Israeli consensus regarding the strength of the alliance with the UAE, its durability and its practical value.
The event, organised by Ambassador Mohamed Al Khaja, brought together the highest levels of Israel’s political establishment, including President Isaac Herzog, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, alongside political, security and religious figures as well as foreign diplomats.
The scale of participation reflected what many saw as a clear Israeli decision to treat the UAE as an advanced strategic partner rather than merely another country that signed a normalisation agreement.
Beyond the Language of Peace and Tolerance
In the public setting, familiar themes dominated the speeches: tolerance, peace, coexistence and combating extremism.
But according to information circulating from multiple sources, the conversations held away from the cameras were markedly different in both tone and substance.
The message reportedly delivered by the Emirati ambassador was direct.
The coming period is sensitive, and the Sudan file is no longer merely a political burden. It is becoming a legal risk.
Human rights reports continue to accumulate. Debates within some European parliaments are becoming more confrontational. Early signals emerging from the United States Congress, according to these accounts, cannot be ignored.
In this context, Abu Dhabi was not seeking public statements of support.
Instead, it was asking for what it considers the true capital of its relationship with Israel: the activation of informal channels of influence.
According to the reports, the UAE wants pro-Israel lobbying networks in Western capitals to become more active, for language inside think tanks and policymaking circles to be recalibrated, and for any references explicitly linking the UAE to the war in Sudan to be softened or removed from reports and draft resolutions.
A Political Investment Seeking Protection
The UAE’s message, observers say, is straightforward.
Abu Dhabi has invested politically, economically and in security cooperation through the normalisation process. It has offered Israel far more than traditional diplomatic relations.
Now, it expects that relationship to protect it from isolation, accountability and any binding legal process that could expose the Emirati leadership to international scrutiny.
Senior Israeli security figures have reportedly acknowledged this role, noting that Israeli influence networks in Europe and the United States have, over recent years, played an important part in preventing direct and unequivocal condemnations of Abu Dhabi in sensitive cases.
Some of these figures went further, stating that official condemnations might have been issued years ago had it not been for coordinated efforts within Western political circles.
In return, there was a commitment that this support would continue as long as coordination remained intact and interests remained aligned.
From Partnership to Alliance
This previously unspoken understanding emerged publicly when Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar declared that relations between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi had moved beyond “partnership” and were heading towards a close “alliance”.
For many observers, the description reflected a functional relationship based on an exchange of roles.
Israel provides political cover and international influence.
The UAE offers funding, openness and public normalisation within a regional environment that remains broadly hostile to Israeli occupation.
President Isaac Herzog went further than diplomatic pleasantries.
In remarks interpreted as criticism of Saudi Arabia, he attacked what he described as the recent “sanctions” imposed on both the UAE and Israel, arguing that certain countries were “spreading hatred” against the two states.
At the same time, Hebrew media outlets intensified their praise of the Emirati leadership, portraying Abu Dhabi as a “pillar of stability and peace” while largely ignoring accusations regarding its role in fuelling regional conflicts.
A Shared Narrative
The speech delivered by Ambassador Al Khaja remained firmly within this framework.
His warnings about “forces of chaos”, the politicisation of religion and his praise for peace as a force that exposes the emptiness of extremism were not primarily directed at Israeli audiences.
Rather, they were aimed at the West.
The underlying message was that the UAE and Israel stand in the same camp in the battle over regional narratives, and that any attempt to target Abu Dhabi should be viewed as an attack on that broader alliance.
What makes this public display particularly striking is its timing.
Most Arab governments that normalised relations with Israel have avoided appearing publicly alongside Israeli officials since the war on Gaza and the continued expansion of settlements and annexation policies in the occupied West Bank.
The UAE, however, has taken the opposite approach.
It has chosen symbolic escalation, appearing to signal that its political wager rests entirely on this alliance.
In this context, Abu Dhabi increasingly appears as a government publicly seeking Israeli protection out of fear of accountability, placing all of its cards in the hands of a single partner in exchange for preserving its international image, even if only temporarily.
