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Israeli minister pays first official visit to Sudan since normalization

Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen discussed diplomatic and security issues with Sudanese leaders, and the potential for economic cooperation.

Israeli Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen at a ceremony in Jerusalem on May 18, 2020. Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90.
Israeli Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen at a ceremony in Jerusalem on May 18, 2020. Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90.

In a historic first, an Israeli Cabinet minister led an official delegation to Sudan on Monday.

Israeli Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen met with Sudanese leaders, including Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the acting head of state, to discuss a variety of diplomatic and security issues as well as the potential for economic cooperation, reported Reuters.

“I am confident that this visit has laid the foundations for many important collaborations, which will help both Israel and Sudan, and security stability in the region, deepen our ties with Africa and lead to further agreements with countries in the region,” said Cohen, according to Israel HaYom.

Sudan officially joined the Abraham Accords on Jan. 6, following the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, which also agreed to normalize relations with the Jewish state. Morocco followed in December with a similar agreement.

Sudan agreed to normalize relations with Israel in October on the condition of being removed from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism. A stipulation on the U.S. side of the agreement included the guarantee that Sudan would agree to pay $335 million in compensation to American victims of terrorism.

The promotion of one of the president’s most partisan and hard-nosed lieutenants to one of the most powerful jobs in Washington may signal how Trump intends to respond to his party’s defeat in the midterms.
“It’s an evolving trend that shows greater signs of permanence than temporary quality,” Dan Diker of the Jerusalem Center for Foreign Affairs told JNS.
The president is continuing consultations with the newly elected factions scheduled through Thursday evening.
The move comes amid a sharp increase in Holocaust denial and distortion around the globe following the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on southern Israel.