Arab states warm to Israel after White House-brokered deal

The White House on Friday announced that President Donald Trump, King Hamad bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa of Bahrain, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to the establishment of full diplomatic relations between Israel and Bahrain.

The announcement follows the historic deal, brokered by Trump and for which he has received Nobel Peace Prize nominations, in which Israel and the UAE normalized relations.

"Now that the ice has been broken, I expect more Arab and Muslim countries will follow the United Arab Emirates’ lead," Trump said.

Israel and Bahrain have committed to begin the exchange of embassies and ambassadors, start direct flights between their countries, and launch cooperation initiatives across a broad range of sectors, the White House announcement said.