​​​​JERUSALEM

An Israeli sports delegation arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday to participate in a world weightlifting competition, according to Israeli media.

The Saudi-hosted World Weightlifting Championship 2023 will qualify Israel to reserve a ticket for next year’s Olympic Games in Paris, the Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported.

Three Israeli weightlifters will compete in three weight classes in the competition.

According to KAN, Israeli athletes are also expected to compete in another competition in Qatar in December.

There was no comment yet from Saudi or Qatari authorities on the report.

Neither Saudi Arabia nor Qatar has diplomatic relations with Israel.

The US administration has been exerting efforts with Saudi Arabia in recent months to establish diplomatic relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Six Arab countries have diplomatic ties with Israel starting with Egypt in 1979, Jordan in 1994, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco in 2020.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar