Welcome back to Axios from Tel Aviv.
- We're back after a week off and looking ahead to Biden-Netanyahu tensions over Iran, Israel's upcoming election and more (1,779 words, 7 minutes).
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Welcome back to Axios from Tel Aviv.
Thanks for reading — tell a friend to sign up!
Rice and Kerry in the Oval Office. Photo: Olivier Douliery-Pool/Getty Images
Members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's inner circle are concerned that President-elect Joe Biden is filling his administration with veterans of the Obama administration, some of whom they've had difficult relations in the past, particularly over Iran.
Why it matters: The Biden and Netanyahu administrations are on course for an early clash over the Iran nuclear deal.
What they're saying: Israel's outgoing ambassador to Washington, Ron Dermer, has told several interlocutors in Washington that he's worried about the influence John Kerry and Susan Rice will have on Biden's foreign policy, according to an Israeli official and a U.S. official.
The big picture: Relations between Barack Obama, Netanyahu and their respective staffs were strained, particularly in Obama's second term. Biden's incoming team looks a lot like Obama's from that time.
Driving the news: Sullivan reiterated Sunday on CNN that Biden intends to return to the deal if Iran returns to compliance, and then he'll seek to negotiate a broader deal. But Netanyahu won't be Biden's only headache as he attempts to carry that policy out.
What’s next: There have still been no contacts between the Israeli government and the new Biden administration, and it's unclear who will handle Israel's outreach to Biden on Iran. One name that has been mentioned is Mossad director Yossi Cohen.
Worth noting: A Biden transition official said Biden had been "one of Israel’s strongest supporters" and that the Biden-Harris administration "will not only further strengthen the U.S.-Israel relationship but also ensure that it enjoys bipartisan backing." Dermer declined to comment for this story.
Go deeper: Biden's nuclear deal dilemma
Security forces in Rabat, Morocco, monitor protests against normalization with Israel. Photo: Fadel Senna/AFP via Getty
Morocco went most of the way to normalizing relations with Israel last month, but only committed to opening liaison offices, rather than embassies.
Why it matters: That decision led to speculation that Morocco was waiting to see if the Biden administration would roll back Trump's recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara before going all the way with Israel.
Driving the news: Morocco's King Mohammed VI told Netanyahu in a call last week that he was committed to opening embassies as part of the next phase of the process, Israeli officials briefed on the call tell me.
The state of play: An Israeli delegation is visiting Rabat this week to inspect Israel's former liaison office, which was shut down 20 years ago but is still owned by the Israeli government, Israeli officials tell me.
What’s next: Israeli officials say the plan is for both sides to open liaison offices as soon as next week, in temporary locations if necessary.
Worth noting: Sudan formally joined the Abraham accords on Wednesday, signing onto the declaration the UAE and Bahrain signed in September at the White House. From the U.S. side, the declaration was signed by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who visited Khartoum today.
Photo Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios. Photos: Pool, Gali Tibbon/Getty Images
Ahead of Israel's March elections, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to win over an unlikely constituency: Arab voters.
Why it matters: Netanyahu has used inflammatory and even racist language against Arab politicians and voters in every election since 2015. But as he attempts to secure a majority for his "pro-Bibi" bloc, he's changing his tune.
Between the lines: Arab turnout surged to a record-high 65% in the previous election, motivated in part by Netanyahu's anti-Arab campaigning. That earned the Arab Joint List 15 seats in the Knesset.
Driving the news: Netanyahu rarely visits Arab towns, but he made stops last week at COVID-19 vaccination stations in two Arab cities.
Netanyahu's move has implications for other parties, many of which had avoided naming Arab candidates for fear that Netanyahu would exploit such a move politically.
What to watch: Netanyahu hopes to win two to three seats from Arab voters and further weaken the Joint List. He sees that as one route to the 61 seats he needs for a Knesset majority that would allow him to pass laws to block his corruption trial.
The Gulf leaders in Al Ula. Photo: Royal Council of Saudi Arabia/Anadolu Agency via Getty
This week's Gulf Cooperation Council summit in Saudi Arabia drew headlines for a deal to end the blockade of Qatar after 3.5 years, but it ended with a message to the incoming Biden administration on Iran.
Why it matters: For several Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, ending the diplomatic crisis with Qatar was part of an effort to remove points of friction with Biden and shift the focus to other issues, like Iran.
Driving the news: At the end of the summit, the Saudi foreign minister announced that his country — together with the UAE and Bahrain — would resume full diplomatic relations with Qatar.
Between the lines: The closing statement also congratulated Joe Biden for his election victory and called for strengthening strategic relations with the U.S. But it included a message for Biden on Iran.
What they're saying: “What we hear from the incoming Biden administration shows they recognize the danger of the Iranian threat and that they will take it seriously," Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal Bin Farhan said at a press conference after the summit.
Christmas eve in Bethlehem. Photo: Hazem Bader/AFP via Getty
U.S. ambassador to the UN Kelly Craft became the first senior U.S. official to openly visit the Palestinian Authority in three years when she attended a Christmas mass in Bethlehem last month.
Why it matters: The fact the Palestinian leadership allowed the visit to go ahead could be another sign of their “charm offensive” ahead of Biden’s inauguration.
Driving the news: Craft’s visit to Bethlehem was designated as “private," sources at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem tell me, but it was approved by the Palestinian government and coordinated with the Palestinian security services. It didn't include meetings with any senior Palestinian officials.
Behind the scenes: U.S. Embassy sources tell me Ambassador David Friedman wanted to join Craft on her visit, but he scrapped the plan over concerns the Palestinians would object to his presence. He'd hoped to tape a Christmas greeting at the Church of the Nativity.
Flashback: After President Trump’s announcement in December 2017 that he'd be moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, the Palestinian Authority severed almost all ties with the U.S. government.