Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are among those who trained alongside Israel [Getty]
Air forces from Arab countries controversially took part in drills in Greece alongside the Israeli Air Force this week.
The annual exercise, Iniochos 2025, involved F-15s, air combat simulations, and operational coordination. A total of 11 countries took part.
Israel’s participation included intelligence aircraft, a Hercules transport plane, and dozens of ground crews.
Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are among countries whose air forces trained alongside Israel.
France, India, Italy, Poland, Montenegro, Slovenia, and Spain also participated.
According to various reports, Cyprus took part by offering supporting personnel, with Bahrain sending observers.
“All types of air operations will be executed at an intense combat pace, both day and night, covering the full spectrum of modern air warfare through a series of complex and highly realistic scenarios,” a statement from Greece’s Hellenic Air Force read, regarding the drill which will go on until 11 April.
Israel skipped the last two editions of the drill, due to its ongoing war on Gaza and tensions with Turkey, Israeli media reported.
The drill comes amid the backdrop of the political scandal in Israel, where two of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s close aides are accused of contact with a foreign agent, money laundering, accepting bribes, fraud, and breach of trust.
The annual exercise also comes after Israel violated the ceasefire agreement with Gaza, killing over 1,000 Palestinians since 18 March.
Since the start of the war on the enclave in October 2023, Israel has killed over 61,700 Palestinians, Gaza’s government media office reported.
