[Washington Examiner] On Friday, President Donald Trump announced that yet another Middle Eastern Muslim-majority country will formally recognize the Jewish State of Israel, in yet another massive foreign policy coup for the president’s diplomacy in the Middle East.
"President [Donald Trump] has announced that Sudan and Israel have agreed to the normalization of relations— another major step toward building peace in the Middle East with another nation joining the Abraham Accords," Judd Deere, deputy assistant to the president and deputy White House press secretary, announced on Twitter.
The recognition of Israel appears to be part of a broader agreement by which Trump will formally rescind Sudan’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism. Between 1989 and 2019, military dictator Omar al-Bashir controlled the North African country, allegedly engaging in human rights abuses and sponsoring terrorism. After protests in 2018, a coup d’etat ousted Bashir from power in April 2019.
"President Donald J. Trump has informed Congress of his intent to formally rescind Sudan’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism," the White House announced on Friday. "This follows on Sudan’s recent agreement to resolve certain claims of United States victims of terror and their families. Yesterday, in fulfillment of that agreement, the transitional government of Sudan transferred $335 million into an escrow account for these victims and their families." |