Crisis Studies of the Islamic World

Crisis Studies of the Islamic World

The Effect of Israel 2023 War Against Gaza on Abraham Accords (with the emphasis on United Arab Emirates and Bahrain)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman
Abstract
The Abraham Peace Accords was the last attempt of the Israeli government to normalize relations with Arab countries with the aim of getting out of isolation and securing its own security, which was signed in September 2020 between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan in the form of separate agreements. These agreements were made without paying attention to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and emphasizing the common interests of both sides in the military, economic, social and environmental fields. Israel's October 2023 war against Gaza left far-reaching effects and consequences at the regional and global levels. The aim of the present research is to investigate the effect of the Gaza war on the Abraham Accords. The main question of the article is what effect did the Gaza war have on the Abraham accords. Findings of the research, based on the descriptive-analytical method and using the theoretical framework of pragmatism, show that the Gaza war has created challenges on the issue of normalizing Israel's relations with the Arab countries in the short term and has reduced the level of relations in the economic, commercial and social fields, but the common interests between the member countries in the political, military, economic and social fields have caused the war in Gaza to have little effect on the treaty in the long run and not to create a threat to the normalization process.
Keywords

Abdollayev, H. P. (2024). Between peace and conflict: The Middle East after the Abraham accords. Vestnik RUDN. International Relations, 24(1), 40–50. https://doi.org/10.22363/2313-0660-2024-24-1-40-50.
Abraham Accords Institute, (2024). Abraham Accords Update: June 24. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/abraham-accords-update-june-2024-abraham-accords-peace-institute-ysufe.
Aghajani Menghari, P., Ashrafi, A., Tohidfam, M. (2022). The Abraham Accords, Iran's Active Action in West Asia and the United States' Transregional Intervention. Quarterly Journal of Political Science, 25 (2). [In Persian].
Al-Ketbi, E. (2024). Covering Gaza after the War: The Regional Perspectives. Carnegie Endowment, 16 February, at: https://carnegieendowment.org/posts/2024/02/governing-gaza-after-the-war-the-regional-perspectives?lang=en.
Babaei, M., Miryusefi, M (2021). The Impact of the Abrahamic Peace Treaty on the Regional Security Complex of the Middle East. Quarterly Journal of Cultural Studies of Diplomacy, 1(1). [In Persian].
Barzegar, K. (2009). Iran's Foreign Policy from the Perspective of Offensive and Defensive Realism. Foreign Relations, 1(1). [In Persian].
Cafiero, G. (2024). Gaza War Creates Dilemmas for Bahrain s Leadership. Middle East Council on Global Affairs, 5 September, at: https://mecouncil.org/gaza-war-creates-dilemmas-for-bahrains-leadership.
Chomsky, N. (2010). Gaza in Crisis, translated by Mohsen Askari Jahghi. Tehran: Nashr-e-Sales Publications. [In Persian].
Eghbal, E. (2008). The Consequences of the Gaza War on Israeli Deterrence. Palestine Studies, New Volume, No. 11. [In Persian].
Gardini, G. L. (2011). “Latin American Foreign Policies between Ideology and Pragmatism: a Framework for Analysis”, in: G. L. Gardini and P. Lambert (eds.), Latin American Foreign Policies; between Ideology and Pragmatism, New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Guzansky, Y., Marshall, Z. A. (2020). The Abraham Accords: ImmediateSignificance and Long-Term Implications. Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs, 379-389. Retrieved from doi:10.1080/23739770.2020.1831861.
Hall, A. (2020). The Abraham Accords Statement and the Art of Deception through Propaganda and Public Relations. Palestinian Leadership Discourse Quarterly, 2(4). [In Persian].
Harkov, L. (2024). Despite War s Challenges, Abraham Accords Peace Institute CEO Optimistic about the Region s Future. Abraham accords Peace Institute, April 2, https://jewishinsider.com/2024/04/aryeh-lightstone-abraham-accords-israel-war-gaza-saudi-arabia-uae.
International Crisis Group (14 June, 2024). The UAE, Israel and a Test of Influence. at: https://www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-north-africa/gulf-and-arabian-peninsula/united-arab-emirates-israelpalestine/uae-israel.
Israel Exports to United Arab Emirates. (2022). Trading Economics, Retrieved from  https://tradingeconomics.com/israel/exports/united-arab-emirates.
Jamal, U. (2023). Israel’s war on Gaza means Arab normalisation is ‘off the table’: Experts. at: https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2023/12/11/israels-war-on-gaza-means-arab-normalisation-is-off-the-table-experts.
Kaleji, Sh. (2008). Domestic Roots of the Gaza Crisis. Quarterly Journal of Regional Studies, 18(3). [In Persian].
Kholghi, J., Samiei Esfahani, A., Farahmand, S. (2024). Palestine as a Camp: A Study of the Zionist Regime's Thanatopolitical Approach to the Gaza Crisis. Political Studies of the Islamic World, 13(1). [In Persian].
Krasna, J. (2024). The October 7 Massacre and the War in Gaza: Impact on Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. Foreign Policy Research Institute, January 5, Middle East Program, https://www.fpri.org/article/2024/01/the-october-7-massacre-and-the-war-in-gaza-impact-on-bahrain-and-the-united-arab-emirates.
Magid, J. (2021). For Israel, the Negev Summit was all about Iran. For other participants, not so much. Times of Israel, Retrieved from: https://www.timesofisrael.com/for-israel-the-negev-summit-was-all-aboutiran-
Mousavi Shafaei, M. (2010). Development-oriented approach to Iran’s foreign policy; necessities and challenges. Politics Quarterly, 40(2). [In Persian]
Northam, J. (2023). The Israel-Hamas War could impact the 3-year-old Abraham Accords, NPR News, November 24, https://www.npr.org/2023/11/24/1215057946/the-israel-hamas-war-could-impact-the-3-year-old-abraham-accords.
Padelford, N. J., Lincoln N.G. (1967). The Dynamics of International Politics. New York: Macmillan.
Prowant, M. J. (2024). Getting Bach to the Abraham Accords. Law and Liberty, October 7, at: https://lawliberty.org/getting-back-to-the-abraham-accords.
Soliman, M. (2024). Old Discordand Abraham Accords: Which Shall Prevail? in S. Jaishankar and Samir Saran, Raisina Chronicles: India s Global Public square, Observer Research Foundation, India: New Delhi.
Tabshiri, H. & Rafiei Basiri M. (2022). Theoretical Analysis on the Formation of Abraham Accords. Journal of Shahed Andisheh, 3(2). [In Persian]
Tohme, M. (2023). The Abraham Accords Shaping a new Middle East, a Thesis presented to the Faculty of Law and Political Science, at Notre Dame University Louaize.
Whitson, S. L. (2024). Tt is Time to Scrap the Abraham Accords. Time, October 11, https://time.com/6339889/cancel-abraham-accords.