[Asia Economy Reporter Lim On-yu] Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu abruptly canceled his first visit to the Gulf Arab normalization country, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
According to local media, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office announced on the 11th (local time) that Netanyahu's planned visit to the UAE was canceled.
Netanyahu and the delegation were scheduled to depart in the morning, but the departure was delayed for unknown reasons, and eventually, the visit cancellation was announced.
The Prime Minister's Office cited Jordan's closure of its airspace to passenger flights as the reason for canceling the visit.
In this regard, The Jerusalem Post quoted diplomatic sources saying that Jordan did not allow the aircraft carrying Netanyahu and his party to enter its airspace following a dispute with Israel over the visit of Jordan's Crown Prince to the holy sites in Jerusalem.
Jordan's Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah arrived at the Israeli border the day before, intending to visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque located on the Temple Mount, a holy site for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in Jerusalem.
However, Israel stopped the Crown Prince, citing that the number of his security personnel exceeded the pre-approved limit, and after a dispute, Crown Prince Hussein canceled his visit to the Temple Mount and returned.
Regarding this, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said, "The uncomfortable relationship with the King of Jordan shows the failure of Netanyahu's government over 15 years," adding, "The responsibility for the strategic rift between Israel and Jordan lies with Prime Minister Netanyahu."
Local media also reported that the sudden hospitalization of the Prime Minister's spouse influenced the cancellation of the visit plan.
In fact, Netanyahu's wife, Sara Netanyahu, visited the hospital early that morning due to poor health, was diagnosed with appendicitis, and is currently hospitalized.
According to local media, Netanyahu was scheduled to make his first official visit to the UAE, which normalized diplomatic relations last year.
In particular, he was reportedly planning to meet Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, UAE, as well as Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia.
Some interpret that Netanyahu pushed forward with the UAE visit aiming to win the votes of Arab voters just over ten days before the general election.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu had planned visits to countries such as the UAE and Bahrain after normalizing relations last September through U.S. mediation, but those plans were canceled three times due to the impact of COVID-19 and other factors.
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