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Jeddah - Yasmine El Tohamy - NEW YORK CITY: The Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Herzog has reaffirmed his country’s cooperation and expanding relations with the GCC nations, describing them as a staunch resistance to Iran.

Speaking at the United Against Nuclear Iran summit in midtown Manhattan, the ambassador pointed to the “Middle East Air Defense” initiative as a strong example of the many multilateral links that are developing between Israel and the GCC.

The ambassador was joined on stage in conversation with Norman Roule, a 34-year veteran of the Central Intelligence Agency who now works as a consultant in the Middle East. Roule remarked that Bahrain, the UAE and Israel in particular are now linked in several fields, which he said often goes unreported in the Western media.

Herzog and Roule also covered the Iran-backed Houthi militias in Yemen, which Roule said had rarely been on the “front burner” of the Israeli mind, despite the terrorist group having “death to the Jews” on their official flag.

Noting that the Houthis are now using Iranian missiles and drones, Roule asked Herzog if Israel now faces a new potential threat with the Houthis.

Herzog said that Iran uses the Houthis to project power in the region, relying on “proxies who have proliferated,” noting that Iranian proxies in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Gaza and Yemen are part of an “Iranian attempt to encircle Israel.”

He added that these proxies “are now armed with strategic weapons … provided by Iran. We are threatened by them, but they are also threatening Saudi Arabia.”

“Earlier this (year), there were attacks on the Emiratis,” he said, adding that the Houthis pose a grave threat to regional security and stability.

Herzog said “Iran sending its arms throughout the region via these proxies is something all of us have to unite against and push back against. It is up to us.”