Bahraini official visits Israeli army headquarters in Tel Aviv ahead of 'Abraham Accords' anniversary

Bahrain's undersecretary for international relations visited the headquarters of the Israeli army in Tel Aviv on Tuesday and met with military officials.

Deputy Minister Abdullah bin Ahmad Al-Khalifa - in charge of the Israeli portfolio at the foreign ministry - met with the head of strategic planning and cooperation directorate in the Israeli army, Maj. Gen. Tal Kelman.

Al-Khalifa arrived in Israel on Sunday for a four-day visit.

It is the minister's third trip to Israel since the two countries normalised ties last year.

حل وكيل وزارة الخارجية ونائب الأمين العام لمجلس الدفاع الأعلى في البحرين، الشيخ عبدالله بن أحمد آل خليفة ضيفًا على جيش الدفاع حيث التقى رئيس هيئة الاستراتيجية والدائرة الثالثة في جيش الدفاع، اللواء تال كلمان.#حللتم_أهلا_ووطأتم_سهلا

🇮🇱 🕊️ 🇧🇭 pic.twitter.com/doLHNKlnpU

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) August 10, 2021

According to Israeli media, the meeting dealt with strengthening security relations between Israel and Bahrain, while a strategic symposium was held to review the common regional challenges between the two sides.

Their discussions focused mainly on Iran, a country which both Israel and Bahrain view with deep suspicion.

It comes shortly before the first anniversary of the signing of the controversial "Abraham Accords" which normalised relations between Bahrain and the UAE with Israel.

The UAE first announced that it would normalise relations with Israel in August 2020, with Bahrain following suit shortly after.

The move has been met with overwhelming public disapproval in Arab countries, with Palestinians saying that the normalisation deals reward Israel while it continues to occupy the West Bank and besiege the Gaza Strip.