Oman parliament votes to further criminalise Israel ties, expansion on boycott law,

Oman parliament votes to further criminalise Israel ties, expansion on boycott law,
The new draft amendment includes a ban on any sports, cultural and economic contact between Oman and Israel, as well as the criminalisation of interacting with Israelis in person and online.
2 min read
26 December, 2022
The Sultanate of Oman has repeatedly refused to normalise ties with Israel unless a Palestinian state is established [Getty]

Oman's parliament on Monday voted on a draft amendment to expand its law banning ties with Israel, during a meeting in which a number of draft laws were discussed.

The amendment is for Article 1 of the Royal Decree, which currently bans "interaction with the Zionist entity for private and public figures", according to The Times of Israel

The amended law will include a ban on any sports, cultural and economic contact, and on interacting with Israelis in person and online.

The Shura Council’s Vice President Yaaqoub Al-Harethi described the amendment as an expansion on the criminalisation and boycott of Israel, according to the Omani WAF news agency.

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Omani law already states that citizens are barred from making contact with individuals or entities based in Israel for any purpose, whether directly or through a third party.

Muscat officially adheres to the Arab League’s stance that any form of diplomatic relations with Israel is entirely dependent on the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Oman and the US held talks to open its airspace for Israeli aircraft, in a bid by Washington to push for more Arab states to normalise ties with Tel Aviv - but Muscat refused to agree to the move.

Last month, the Israeli website i24 revealed that a meeting took place between an Israeli official and Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad bin Hamoud al-Busaidi, in an attempt to bring more Arab countries to establish diplomatic ties with Israel.

Incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Sultanate in 2018 and met with then-Sultan Qaboos bin Said, becoming the first Israeli leader to travel to the country since 1996.