WASHINGTON — The United Arab Emirates lays into Israel over this week’s Jerusalem Flag March, characterizing it as an “annual spectacle of unchecked violence and extremist provocation” while issuing a rare warning against Israel if Jerusalem does not take “decisive steps” against the phenomenon.
“It is utterly unfathomable that, amid the ongoing carnage in Gaza, the Israeli government—underscored by the presence of one of its ministers—continues to permit” the flag march, an Emirati official told The Times of Israel in a statement issued shortly after Abu Dhabi summoned Israel’s ambassador to the Gulf country for a rare reprimand.
It was the second time an Israeli envoy has ever been summoned by Emirati authorities, and the first time since the ongoing Gaza war began. A second source familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel that the meeting at the Emirati foreign ministry saw the harshest rebuke that Abu Dhabi has ever conveyed to an Israeli official.
The Emirati anger was particularly notable, given that the country has differentiated itself from Israel’s other Arab partners who have downgraded ties in various ways amid the Israel-Hamas war. While it has limited some public demonstrations of the relationship, the UAE has kept its ambassador in Tel Aviv, maintained daily flights to Israel and even boosted economic cooperation.
But the scenes at Monday’s flag march appear to have been too much for Abu Dhabi to quietly accept.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of young religious nationalist participants were filmed chanting racist slogans such as “death to Arabs” and “may your village burn” as they marched through the Muslim Quarter of the Old City.
Participants verbally harassed and physically assaulted Palestinian locals. Revelers vandalized property, though made an exception for a number of ATM machines that had signs on them explaining to participants that they belonged to Jews.
A far-right group participating in the march also unfurled a banner calling for the mass expulsion of Palestinians in Gaza.
Several far-right ministers participated in the march on Jerusalem Day, which marks the reunification of the city in the 1967 Six Day War, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to participants at a ceremony capping off the event.
Israel’s police commissioner said that no arrests were made and that only a small number of participants were briefly detained, insisting that those misbehaving made up only one percent of revelers.
“This is not an isolated incident. It happens every year, and year after year, they allow it to unfold without consequence,” the Emirati official said.
“We have made clear — in no uncertain terms — that we expect them to take decisive steps to put an end to this.”
“They would do well to take that expectation extremely seriously,” the official warned.
A separate statement from the UAE foreign ministry on its decision to summon Israeli Ambassador Yossi Shelley also took issue with the Monday visit made by hundreds of Israeli religious nationalists to the Temple Mount compound, known to Muslims as the Haram al-Sharif. Among the visitors was far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who said he prayed there in violation of the so-called status quo under which non-Muslim prayer is banned.
Ben Gvir declared that his policy overseeing the police has upended the status quo by allowing Jews to openly pray and fully prostrate at the flashpoint holy site.
Ben Gvir was flanked on his visit by several lawmakers from his party and another far-right lawmaker was separately filmed walking across the holy site with an Israeli flag, repeatedly declaring, “The Temple Mount is in our hands.”
The Temple Mount is the holiest place in Judaism, as the site of the two biblical Temples. It is the third-holiest site in Islam and home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Perceived changes to the status quo on the Temple Mount evoke strong emotions and are frequently cited as a Muslim motivation for religious violence. Hamas termed its devastating invasion of southern Israel on October 7, 2023, “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood,” which started the Gaza war.
The UAE foreign ministry statement said Israeli actions in Jerusalem on Monday “represent dangerous incitement against Muslims, and are a flagrant violation of the sanctity of the holy city.”
The statement said the Israeli action “not only targets the Palestinian people but the entire international community, further escalating tensions at a time when efforts should be focused on ending the ongoing tragedy in the Gaza Strip.”
Abu Dhabi called on Israel to condemn “these hostile acts and hold perpetrators accountable — without exception for ministers and officials.”
“Failure to act will be seen as tacit approval that will only further deepen the cycle of hatred, racism, and instability,” the Emirati foreign ministry added, calling for upholding the status quo at Jerusalem holy sites.