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AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, FileFILE – Secretary of Interior David Bernhardt, center, joined by, from left, Rabbi Abraham Shemtov and Rabbi Levi Shemtov, light the National Hanukkah Menorah on The Ellipse, on December 10, 2020 in Washington.
The unique event will feature blessings and candle lighting by several other UN ambassadors
Morocco’s Ambassador to the United Nations Omar Hilale will join his Israeli counterpart Gilad Erdan in-person on Thursday night to light the final Hanukkah candle on the eighth day of the Jewish holiday.
The rare event, hosted by the Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations and the Forum for Cultural Diplomacy, will feature blessings and candle lighting by several other UN ambassadors, including from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain.
The virtual reception will be moderated by Rabbi Yehuda Sarna of the Jewish Council of the Emirates.
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Last week, Morocco agreed to resume relations with Israel in a historic breakthrough, becoming the fourth Arab state to normalize ties with the Jewish state in three months.
UAE has become the first Arab country to tread on the path to peace, since Jordan last signed a peace treaty with Israel 26 years ago in 1994.
Bahrain followed suit, joining a landmark signing ceremony in the White House — also known as the Abraham Accords — which was brokered by the Trump administration, with Sudan becoming the third to normalize relations with Jerusalem prior to Morocco.
