Israeli Energy Minister Silvan Shalom was to lead an official Israeli delegation to Abu Dhabi on Friday, the first official visit by an Israeli government figure to the United Arab Emirates since the suspected Israeli assassination of a Hamas commander in Dubai in 2010. Shalom was set to attend the Jan. 20-22 World Future Energy Summit accompanied by two advisers, Foreign Ministry officials and representatives from the private sector, his media adviser said. The Israeli delegation will be the first at government level to visit the UAE since the Mossad was accused of masterminding the 2010 assassination of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in a Dubai hotel room. Israel has refused to confirm or deny that its agents killed Mabhouh, a senior commander in the military wing of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist terror group that rules the Gaza Strip. The visit could also signal an improvement in ties between Israel and the Gulf states due to their shared concern about Iran's nuclear program. Shalom is a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party and holds several ministerial portfolios. He is a past foreign minister and has been touted as a possible successor to President Shimon Peres.
Israeli minister leads delegation to Abu Dhabi energy summit
Energy Minister Silvan Shalom is leading an Israeli delegation to Abu Dhabi for the World Future Energy Summit, the first visit by an Israeli government official to the United Arab Emirates since the 2010 Mabhouh assassination in Dubai.
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