Sudan Peace with Israel Reverses the Three ‘Noes’ of Arab Rejectionism

The announcement Friday of peace and normalization between Sudan and Israel is one of the most significant diplomatic achievements in the Middle East in the past half-century. In particular, it reverses the infamous three “noes” of Khartoum — no peace, no recognition, and no negotiation — that Arab states adopted in 1967, after Israel’s victory in the war that year.

The Arab summit in Khartoum, Sudan, condemned the region to decades of conflict, as the Jewish Virtual Library notes:

From August 29 to September 1, 1967, eight Arab heads of state attended a summit conference in Khartoum where they formulated the consensus that underlines the policies of most Arab states in conflict with Israel. Among other issues, the resolution called for the continued struggle against Israel. By adopting the dictum of no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel and no negotiations with Israel (The 3 Noes), the Arab states appeared to slam the door on any possible progress towards peace.

The text of the resolution adopted at Khartoum laid out the “framework of the main principles by which the Arab States abide, namely, no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with it.”

That was the Arab world’s practical response to their defeat in the war, in which Egypt and Syria had sought to wipe out Israel and drive the Jews into the sea. (Jordan also joined in, albeit somewhat more reluctantly.)

Friday’s announcement marks a dramatic change — the third “yes” to peace, after the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed the Abraham Accords last month. According to President Trump, more Arab states will soon make peace as well.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). His newest e-book is The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.