Emirati royal invites Israeli singer to his Dubai home for religious celebration

Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Nahyan received Omer Adam at his residence in Dubai, the singer said in a Facebook post, confirming he was there to participate in celebrations for a Jewish holiday.

"Omar stayed at the Sheikh's house and made a visit to the Jewish community synagogue in Dubai in celebration of simchat torah," the post said.

His attendance at the week-long celebrations for the Festival of Joy was also confirmed by the Israeli ministry of foreign affairs.

"The Israeli singer Omer Adam visits the Emirates and participates in the celebration of the Torah Festival with the Jewish community in Dubai," the ministry said on Facebook.

It comes after the countries signed a US-brokered deal in mid-September to normalise relations.

The deal has been rejected and condemned as a "betrayal" by the Palestinians who point out that Israel continues to occupy the West Bank and East Jerusalem and besiege the Gaza Strip, denying Palestinian rights to self-determination.

The Trump administration has made Israel-Arab normalisation a key focus of its Middle East foreign policy, claiming them to be "peace deals".

Read also: Saudi Prince Bandar bin Sultan lambasts Palestinian leaders as 'failures' for rejecting normalisation

The two Gulf countries broke decades of consensus among Arab states that there would be no relations with Israel until Palestinian statehood had been assured. 

Before Bahrain and the UAE, only Egypt and Jordan had diplomatic relations with Israel.

Since the agreements in September, speculation has pointed to a handful of other Arab countries on the brink of reaching similar deals, with Oman and Sudan as the most likely candidates.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay connected