Mauritania-Israel Relations
On October 28, 1999, Israeli Foreign Minister David
Levy signed an agreement in Washington
establishing full diplomatic relations with Mauritania, an Islamic-ruled country located in Africa and a member of the Arab League.
The signing ceremony was held in the presence of U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright who had invited Levy and his Mauritanian counterpart, Ahmed
Sid’Ahmed.
Both Israel and the United States view the establishment
of full diplomatic relations between Israel and Mauritania as a milestone
in the promotion of normalization, which is widely seen as the goal of the
peace process which has evolved since the Madrid Conference. Mauritania joins Egypt and Jordan as the only members of the Arab League to post ambassadors in Israel.
Earlier that year, in July 1999, Israel established its first project in Mauritania - an eye clinic operated by
the Foreign Ministry's Center for International Cooperation (MASHAV). The clinic provided treatment for
many patients at the central hospital in the capital,
Nouakchott, with the participation of Dr. Irit Rosenblatt
and Dr. Anat Robinson, of the Rabin Medical Center in
Petach Tikva.
On their first day at the hospital, the doctors saw about 520
patients. During their stay, the doctors performed eye operations on patients
suffering form various degrees of blindness, using a large
quantity of disposable equipment flown in from Israel.
As part of the medical assistance Israel is extending to
Mauritania, it was also decided to promote the
establishment of a national institute for treating terminal
illnesses.
Sources: Israel
Government Press Office |