The Israeli news outlet i24News reported on Tuesday that Israeli security and defense companies will not participate in the upcoming Dubai Airshow, one of the world’s premier events in the civil and military aviation sectors.

According to the report, the exhibition’s organizing company, Informa Markets, announced that the decision followed a “technical evaluation,” without specifying the nature of the assessment.

Tim Hawes, the managing director of the Dubai Airshow, confirmed during a press conference unveiling the 2025 edition of the event that “the Israeli exhibitors who were scheduled to attend will not be participating.”

i24News noted that this move comes amid heightened tensions between the Israeli regime and several Arab Gulf states since the start of the war on Gaza on October 7, 2023.

The Dubai Airshow, traditionally hosting global aerospace and defense industry leaders, has in past years featured Israeli firms following the signing of normalization agreements. However, regional diplomatic friction and public outrage over the Israeli regime’s ongoing war in Gaza have increasingly strained those ties.

Observers see the withdrawal of Israeli participants as a reflection of the shifting political landscape in the region, as Gulf nations face growing domestic and international pressure to distance themselves from Tel Aviv amid the continued Israeli aggression against the besieged Gaza Strip.

Despite the apparent strained relations, the UAE has emerged not merely as a passive bystander but as one of the most active Arab enablers of genocide in Gaza, facilitating the transit of goods through its ports and investing heavily in Israeli military firms, while publicly condemning resistance.

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Its hosting of Israeli military expos, ownership stakes in Israeli arms manufacturers, and integration into the UAE–Israeli land corridor effectively underwrite the machinery of destruction. This betrayal renders it complicit, not just a partner, and foreshadows that its strategic role will draw the rage of the region when the tide of resistance fully turns.

UAE may downgrade ties with 'Israel'

Reuters reported in September that the United Arab Emirates is weighing a downgrade in its relations with "Israel" if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government proceeds with annexing all or parts of the occupied West Bank, according to three people familiar with Abu Dhabi's internal discussions.

The UAE is one of the few Arab states to have normalized ties with "Israel," and any rollback would mark a serious blow to the "Abraham Accords", the 2020 US-brokered deal hailed as a foreign policy victory for both Donald Trump and Netanyahu.

"Israel's" recent policy steps have fueled concerns that annexation may soon be on the agenda. The territory, captured in the 1967 war alongside East al-Quds, remains regarded by the United Nations and most countries as illegally occupied.

For Netanyahu, whose coalition depends on extremist factions, annexation could serve as a rallying issue before elections expected next year. Abu Dhabi has already warned that such a move would cross a "red line."

Airshow ban

Signs of strain have already emerged. According to three sources, "Israel's" defense firms were told they cannot exhibit at the Dubai Airshow in November, according to Reuters. An Israeli official and a security executive confirmed the exclusion.

"Israel's" Security Ministry acknowledged being informed but offered no details. A spokesperson for the Israeli embassy in Abu Dhabi told Reuters conversations about "Israel's" participation were still ongoing.

A source inside "Israel" suggested that despite the growing rift, the government remains confident it can eventually mend ties with Abu Dhabi.

"Israel's" embassy in the UAE said the country is "committed to the Abraham Accords" and intends to keep working toward stronger bilateral relations.