Dear friends,

Tuesday, September 15, was an historic occasion. The Prime Minister of Israel and representatives of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates officially opened normal relations, signing diplomatic agreements at a White House ceremony hosted by President Trump.

While full details of what is being called the “Abraham Accords” have yet to be released, this is an important and much welcomed step on the long road to peace in the Middle East.

It is, in some ways, sad that such a development is cause for celebration. After all, formally recognizing the existence of a country that is more than seven decades old seems rather trivial. But it’s not a trivial matter at all. It is quite significant: Bahrain and the UAE are only the third and fourth Arab countries to normalize relations with Israel and many experts predict that this will lead to more exciting announcements in the months and years to come.

For all peace-loving people, today is a wonderful development and some truly good news during what has been a very dark time for our world.

May this indeed herald more good tidings to come and may our New Year be filled with the blessings of health, hope, and peace for us, for Israel, and for the world.

L’shalom,

Yoshi