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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, In 2016, Bahrain was the only Gulf Arab state to
3publicly mourn the passing of former Israeli President Shimon
4Peres; and
 
5    WHEREAS, In 2017, Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa
6called for an end to the Arab League boycott of Israel; and
 
7    WHEREAS, In 2018, Bahrain's then Foreign Minister Khaled
8bin Ahmed al Khalifa asserted Israel's right to defend itself
9and welcomed Israeli visitors to Bahrain in 2019; and
 
10    WHEREAS, In 2018, the Israeli national anthem was publicly
11played for the first time in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)
12during an international judo tournament in Abu Dhabi; and
 
13    WHEREAS, In 2019, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan,
14President of the UAE, announced the appointment of the first
15chief rabbi in the UAE; and
 
16    WHEREAS, In 2019, Israel was invited to attend the 2021
17World Expo in the UAE; and
 
18    WHEREAS, On August 13, 2020, Israeli Prime Minister
19Benjamin Netanyahu, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohammad

 

 

HR0913- 2 -LRB101 22358 LAW 73418 r

1Bin Zayed, and Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Arab
2Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan
3announced an agreement to fully normalize relations between
4their countries, and Israel agreed to suspend their proposed
5annexation of parts of the West Bank; and
 
6    WHEREAS, On August 13, 2020, United Nations Special
7Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov
8declared his support for the agreement between the UAE and
9Israel, including the Israeli pledge to halt proposed
10annexations; Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the United
11Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, also welcomed the
12agreement; and
 
13    WHEREAS, On August 29, 2020, the UAE revoked their 1972 law
14which prohibited business relations between individuals in
15Israel and the UAE, including the exchange of goods; and
 
16    WHEREAS, On September 9, 2020, the Arab League declined to
17condemn the normalization of relations between Israel and the
18UAE by voting down a proposal to denounce the normalization
19deal; and
 
20    WHEREAS, On September 10, 2020, Senior Advisor to the
21President Jared Kushner announced the opening of airspace over
22Saudi Arabia to commercial flights between Israel and Bahrain

 

 

HR0913- 3 -LRB101 22358 LAW 73418 r

1after Saudi Arabia opened their airspace to flights between
2Israel and the UAE on September 2, 2020; and
 
3    WHEREAS, On September 11, 2020, Israeli Prime Minister
4Benjamin Netanyahu and Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa
5announced the establishment of full diplomatic relations
6between their countries; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Bahrain and the UAE are the first Gulf Arab states
8to announce formal relations with Israel; therefore, be it
 
9    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
10HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
11the Illinois House of Representatives supports the
12establishment of full diplomatic relations between the State of
13Israel and both the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain; and be it
14further
 
15    RESOLVED, That the Illinois House of Representatives calls
16on other Arab and Muslim countries to establish full relations
17with Israel with the goal of realizing peace and stability
18throughout the Middle East; and be it further
 
19    RESOLVED, That the Illinois House of Representatives
20reaffirms its support for a negotiated solution to the
21Israeli-Palestinian conflict.