Israeli Journalists Celebrate Passport Stamps in Bahrain

Thousands of Arabs and Palestinians have been protesting against the US-sponsored Bahrain Summit; believed to pave the way for Trump administration’s so-called Peace Plan, while billions of dollars have been promised for Palestine; including Gaza and the West Bank in addition to investments allocated to Jordan, Egypt, and Lebanon.

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Meanwhile, several Israeli journalists have been celebrating their ability to travel to Bahrain for the first time as many of them had confirmed making their way to Bahrain in a bid to cover the two-day international meeting taking place in Bahrain, led by Trump’s advisor and son-in-law, Jared Kushner

The journalists had reportedly acquired special permissions to attend the meeting for the first time even in Bahrain, the host country.

This comes in a time when Israeli passport holders are not allowed to acquire visas into Bahrain as well as other Arab countries.

From the moment they were allowed entrance to Bahrain, Israeli journalists and officials took to social media to express pleasure of being on the Bahraini soil for the first time ever as Israelis.

One correspondent for Israel's Channel 13, Barak Ravid, went to Twitter to post his photo on the way to Bahrain saying: "I've been traveling the world to cover events for 13 years, but this one is the most exciting,”.

The was before Ravid went to Twitter to post a photo after he arrived in Bahrain while he was drinking a “Lebanese Beer”.

Translation: “With a Lebanese beer from Bahrain, a new Middle East.”

“Proud and happy to enter Bahrein as an Israeli journalist with an Israeli passport to cover the Bahrain Workshop,” tweeted the Israel Hayom daily’s journalist, Ariel Kahana.

In response, Jason Greenblatt, an adviser to US President Donald Trump and one of the architects of the conference, went to Twitter to welcome the journalists and express his gratitude for the “Peace Prosperity Workshop” of Bahrain.

Another photo claimed to be for an Israeli journalist who was posing in front of the “The Bahraini Society against Normalization with Zionist Enemy” organization was widely shared among social media users who claimed it was taken on Monday in Bahrain, yet it appeared to be an old photo that was taken by a US-Israeli citizen earlier in Bahrain.

In the meantime, the US-sponsored summit and the peace plan has received heavy criticism, particularly after the White House launched their “Peace for Prosperity” website last weekend.

The plan that clearly failed to address the Israeli occupation of Palestine, a Palestinian independent state and the Palestinians’ rights they have been demanding for years now, was criticized and analysts predicted its failure.