• The United Arab Emirates (UAE) formally opened its embassy in Israel on July 14, inaugurating its diplomatic offices in Tel Aviv less than a year after the two countries announced they would establish open relations.

• The UAE embassy’s inauguration came two weeks after Israel cut the ribbon on its embassy in Abu Dhabi.

• The UAE and Bahrain normalised relations with Israel last year under the “Abraham Accords” crafted by the administration of then US President Donald Trump. Sudan and Morocco have since also moved to establish ties with Israel.

• The UAE embassy is situated in the same tower as Israel’s stock exchange in the heart of Tel Aviv’s business district. Most countries maintain embassies in Tel Aviv because of Jerusalem’s disputed status —  one of the thorniest issues in the Mideast conflict. 

• The US moved its embassy to Jerusalem in 2018, and a handful of countries have followed suit.

• Israel captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war and later annexed it in a move unrecognised by most of the international community. The city is the seat of the Israeli parliament, Supreme Court and many government offices. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as capital of a future independent state.

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