Minister encourages Gulf patients to go to Israel for treatment

Israeli Tourism Minister Yariv Levin is using his US contacts to encourage patients in Gulf countries to travel to Israel for treatment, Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Friday.

Levin is said to have contacted senior officials from the White House earlier this week, asking them to mediate between his ministry and a number of Gulf States regarding this issue.

“We haven’t reached the stage of an influx of tourists,” the minister said, “but it could kick-start such relations.” He stressed the advanced state of medical facilities in Israel and the ability of Gulf residents to pay well for the best treatment. According to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, wealthy Gulf citizens and members of the various ruling families have already travelled in secret to Israel for medical purposes.

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The crisis between the Gulf States and Qatar is helping Israel to “improve” its links in the region, notably with Saudi Arabia. There have been serious calls for the normalisation of relations between the two states.