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Re: اسرائيل تؤكد على انها قدمت موافقة خطية لن� (Re: GeerTor Tong)
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Quote: Saudis pledge to honor Israel peace terms for islands given by EgyptJerusalem reportedly kept informed of new agreement transferring authority over Gulf of Aqaba’s Sanafir and Tiran from Cairo to RiyadhBY STUART WINER April 11, 2016, 5:11 pm A new agreement between Egypt and Saudi Arabia over control of two islands in the Gulf of Aqaba has implications for the Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty, thus requiring Cairo to keep officials in Jerusalem informed of the developments.
The islands are mentioned in the Israel-Egypt peace treaty, and the Saudis are pledging to honor its terms — albeit while stressing that they will have no direct contact with Israel over the matter. Saudi Arabia is formally at war with Israel, but senior figures from the two countries have met in public on several recent occasions, and the countries have a shared concern in grappling with the regional danger posed by Iran. The Hebrew-language Ynet website, citing the Egyptian daily Al-Ahram, reported Monday that peace partners Egypt and Israel have been in contact recently over the plan to redraw the maritime border between Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Specifically, Egyptian authorities notified Israel about a plan to transfer control of two Gulf of Aqaba islands, Sanafir and Tiran, from Egypt to Saudi Arabia.
The islands strategically lie at the opening of the Gulf of Aqaba into the Red Sea and their status was detailed in the terms of the 1979 peace treaty between Israel and Egypt. Israel’s seaport Eilat is located at the top of the gulf and is a major point of entry for goods into the country.
Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said in an interview that his country would honor the treaty’s terms as regards the islands. Saudi Arabia won’t negotiate with Israel about the islands, he said, since “the commitments that Egypt approved [in the peace treaty] we are also committed to, including the stationing of an international force on the islands. We looked into the matter and we know our legal position. We are committed to what Egypt committed to before the international community.”
Israeli sources told Ynet that the Foreign Ministry has been examining the legality of the matter and the Defense Ministry is likewise reviewing the plan. The report confirmed the Egyptians have reassured Israel that the Saudis intend to honor the commitments that Cairo has under the peace treaty.
Al-Ahram reported that if Israel agrees with the islands’ transfer as planned by the Egyptians and the Saudis, it would entail changing details of the peace treaty and that will require a Knesset vote. But the Israeli sources noted that since the Saudis are also committed to its terms, there may be no need to change the treaty, Ynet said. Israel so far has not offered any objection to the plan. Under the terms of the peace treaty, a multinational force is stationed on the islands to ensure they are demilitarized and to protect free movement of shipping in the gulf.
On Saturday Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Saudi King Salman, who is visiting Egypt, announced they had agreed to set up a $16 billion investment fund and settle a longstanding maritime dispute over the islands.
A day later, they announced a plan to build a bridge over the Red Sea to Egypt, and the ######### of state met at the historic Abdeen Palace in Cairo to oversee the inking of a string of agreements Egypt hopes will help boost its battered economy.
In one of the most high-profile announcements, Cairo said it had agreed to demarcate its maritime borders with Saudi Arabia, officially placing the two islands in the Straits of Tiran in Saudi territory.
The Egyptian parliament must still vote on the plan to approve it.
The agreement announced by the cabinet on Saturday to settle the dispute over Tiran and Sanafir provoked an immediate backlash in Egypt, where thousands tweeted a hashtag accusing Sissi of selling the islands.
Tiran had historically been a Saudi island “leased” to Egypt in 1950. http://www.timesofisrael.com/saudis-pledge-to-honor-israel-peace-terms-for-islands-given-by-egypt/http://www.timesofisrael.com/saudis-pledge-to-honor-israel-peace-terms-for-islands-given-by-egypt/
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Re: اسرائيل تؤكد على انها قدمت موافقة خطية لن� (Re: GeerTor Tong)
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Quote: Israel: Saudi Arabia Gave Written Assurances Over Freedom of Passage in Tiran Straits Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon says the document ensures the commitment of Saudi Arabia, which doesn’t have formal ties with Israel, to adhere to terms of Israel-Egypt peace treaty.
Gili Cohen Apr 12, 2016 5:18 PM read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038 Israel's freedom of passage in the Straits of Tiran following their handover to Saudi Arabia was guaranteed in the deal, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon said in a Tuesday briefing with military reporters. The countries involved in the issue agreed to continue the freedom of passage in the area, and this is reflected in a document handed to Israel. The document ensures the commitment of Saudi Arabia, which doesn’t have formal agreements with Israel, to carry on with the principles reached by Israel and Egypt in their 1979 peace agreement. According to the accord, the Straits of Tiran and the Gulf of Aqaba are international waterways open to free sailing and flying. read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038 The two islands, Tiran and Sanafir, control entry to the Gulf of Aqaba and the ports of Eilat and Aqaba in Israel and Jordan, respectively. Tiran is the closest of the two to Egypt's coast, lying about six kilometers from the Red Sea Resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038 Israel's 1979 treaty with Egypt guarantees Israel full maritime passage rights in the Red Sea and through the Straits of Tiran, a deal enforced by the presence of a multinational force deployed in the Sinai Peninsula. Ya'alon noted since the freedom of passage is ensured in the peace agreement between Israel and Egypt, an early request was made to Israel regarding the transfer of the islands of Tiran and Sanafir to Saudi Arabia. "An appeal was made to us – and it needed our agreement, [and the agreement of] the Americans who were involved in the peace agreement and of the MFO," Ya'alon said, referring to the Multinational Force and Observers peacekeeping forces at the border. "We reached an agreement between the four parties – the Saudis, the Egyptians, Israel and the United States – to transfer the responsibility for the islands, on condition that the Saudis fill in the Egyptians' shoes in the military appendix of the peace agreement." read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038 Ya'alon added that the defense establishment does not object to the construction of an overland bridge at the site, and that the move was carried out with Israel's consent. He even stated that the Saudis' understandings and obligations are ensured in the document. read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038 http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038[/QUOTEhttp://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.714038[/QUOTE]
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