Speculation rife over Netanyahu’s Oman visit

Israeli premier’s visit could be linked to Iran, and not Palestinian issue, analysts say

ANALYSIS

As the finer details about the purposes of the unexpected visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Oman last week remained deeply shrouded in mystery, analysts were increasingly inclined to tie it to Iran, rather than Palestine.

The Palestine connection was made because, a few days earlier, Sultan Qaboos received Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and a Palestinian delegation in Muscat. It was tempting for observers and media to deduce that Oman, a country that has built a reputation for mediating in complex situations, was working on a mediation between the Palestinians and Israelis.

However, one day after the visit and amid a flurry of denunciations and cheers, Oman’s Foreign Minister Yousuf Bin Alawi told the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain that his country was not acting as mediator, but was offering ideas to help Israel and Palestine to come together for negotiations.

Moemen Basri, a Gulf analyst, said that improving relations between Israel and Palestine would mean a trip to Egypt, not to Oman.

US, Iran situation

He said that he believed that Oman was rather working on improving the situation between the US and Iran, just like it did in 2013, and that Israel was a crucial factor for the success of such an enterprise.

“I see the announcement of the visit as a bold step by Oman to find a way out of crises that are plaguing or threatening the region,” he said. “There is of course a strong inclination to help put an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by giving a new chance to the parties involved to come together, but Muscat also wants to ensure there is no conflict with Iran as the screws are being tightened around it with the serious US-imposed sanctions looming larger,” he said.

Writing for the newspaper Al Sharq Al Awsat, Abdul Rahman Al Rashed argued that “what has been said about the Omani mediation between the Palestinians and the Israelis is unlikely, given that Egypt is taking over the task. Is it related to the Iranian-Israeli issue? Maybe, given Oman has the confidence of the two sides as an honest broker,” he said.

Meanwhile, Israeli Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz’s office said he will travel to Oman next week to participate in an international transportation conference.