Sudan provisionally plans to send a first official delegation to Israel next week to firm up bilateral ties that were established last year under U.S. mediation, two sources said on Tuesday.
One of the sources, who could not be identified by name or nationality, said the Sudanese delegation would comprise security and intelligence officials. The specific date for next week's visit had yet to be finalized, the source added.
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Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen and Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, head of Sudan's ruling sovereign council, meeting in Khartoum
Sudanese and Israeli government spokesmen had no immediate comment on the arrival of the delegation.
Israel has previously sent a delegation to Sudan headed by Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen that also featured representatives from the country's National Security Council.
The delegation discussed a variety of issues, including regional security and stability in addition to potential economic cooperation between the two countries with an emphasis on water resources, agriculture, renewable energy, health and aviation.
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Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok, right, welcomes then-U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in Khartoum, Jan. 6, 2021
(Photo: AP)
Sudan joined the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco in agreeing to move toward normal relations with Israel in the 2020 Abraham Accords deals brokered by the Trump administration. The Biden administration has pledged to pursue such outreach.
The normalization is seen in Sudan as an initiative led by the military which has welcomed visits by Israeli officials in recent months. In a related measure, the Khartoum cabinet voted last week to repeal a 1958 law that forbade diplomatic and business relations with Israel.