Five more countries are ‘seriously considering’ striking a normalization deal with Israel after the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed accords this week. This is according to  White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.

Al Arabiya reports, however, that Meadows, would not identify the five nations. All he would say, without further comment, was that the three were in the (same) region. Qatar earlier this week had  outright rejected normalizing ties with Israel.

US President Donald Trump has previously spoken confidently about more countries agreeing to a normalization of relations with Israel following the UAE and Bahrain deals.

Al Arabiya reports that one possibility is Oman. Omani ambassador to the US Hunaina al-Mughairy attended a ceremony at the White House on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Trump, also on Tuesday, speculated that Saudi Arabia would eventually agree to a deal.

Diana Buttu, a lawyer and former legal counsel to the Palestinian negotiating team, last monthsaid more Arab countries were expected to follow the UAE’s example. She said,“Palestinians feel more alone and more disappointed and we sadly expect other countries to follow suit.”

Umm Muhammed Umar