BICOM

According to Finance Ministry documents, Israel opened a diplomatic mission in one of the Persian Gulf states between 2010 and 2012, although neither Israel’s Foreign Ministry nor the Prime Minister’s Office would reveal the identity of the state in question.

The information, reported in Haaretz, came to light as it was included in financial documents submitted by the Finance Ministry to Israel’s cabinet which is deliberating approval for the 2013 and 2014 state budgets. The document reveals that between 2010 and 2012, Israel established new embassies in New Zealand, Turkmenistan, Ghana, Albania and the Caribbean, plus consulates in Sao Paulo, Guangzhou (China), St Petersburg and Munich, a diplomatic delegate to the Pacific and a mission in the Gulf. A foreign ministry spokesman told AFP that Israel “officially has no diplomatic representation in the Gulf.”

Israel did operate diplomatic missions in Qatar and Oman until both were closed in the wake of Operation Cast Lead in 2008 to 2009, during which Israel entered the Gaza Strip in an effort to quell rocket fire on Israeli civilians. However, in May 2010, Israel’s then trade minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer attended an international economic conference in Qatar. Tzipi Livni, in her capacity as Israel’s Foreign Minister at the time also visited Qatar in November 2008.

It is thought that many of the Gulf states, which are largely Sunni dominated, share Israel’s concerns over Shi’ite Iran’s military and particularly nuclear ambitions. Last month, Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad Al-Thani fronted the Arab League announcement which appeared to soften the organisation’s conditions for a comprehensive Arab peace with Israel. However, Qatar is also a significant financial supporter of the Hamas authority in the Gaza Strip and last year Al-Thani became the first Arab leader to visit the Hamas-controlled territory.