‘Nothing will stop a deal with Saudi Arabia’: Middle East expert Dr. Nirit Ofir tells the 'Post'

‘I have three hats and I am constantly juggling between them,” laughed Dr. Nirit Ofir.

Ofir, a mother of six, spoke to The Jerusalem Post during a break from one of her recurring trips to and from the Gulf. This time she had just returned from a security-themed conference in Saudi Arabia, where she presented Israeli patents and companies working in the field.

Wearing her first hat, Ofir is an academic with a PhD in Middle Eastern studies from Bar-Ilan University, and a lecturer at Reichman University.

Her doctorate revolved around processes of liberalization and democratization in the Arab world, which she ardently holds are taking place here and now.

“These processes exist, and the trend is very clear. It’s true that it’s taking a lot of time, but we should remember that Europe also took about 400 years to reach current views on pluralism, liberalization, and democratization,” she reminded.

Ofir described how the fieldwork she conducted for her dissertation changed her life. “While working for my doctorate I realized very quickly that media and press coverage was lacking, certainly in the last 15 years. I decided that without going into the field I would sin against the truth and sin against myself. I entered homes of Muslim families in Syria, Morocco and Jordan, and conducted personal interviews.”

Her work won several international awards and made her fall in love with fieldwork and working with people.

“This led me to understand the region and get to know its people more than I would’ve managed in any other method,” she explained.

Wearing her second hat, Ofir is a businesswoman traveling around the Muslim world.

“I represent Israeli tech companies in the domain of regulations and patents, including in the fields of agriculture, medicine, security, and many other impressive and exclusive patents which can only originate here in Israel, often working with representatives of countries that do not have diplomatic relations with Israel,” she explained.

Ofir holds that, in order to do business with these countries, understanding their culture and consulting experts is key.

She is invited to conferences around the globe as a guest speaker.

“There is never a dull moment. There is a lot of work when it comes to regulations and even to questions such as jurisdiction, contract signing, and how to transfer money between companies from countries that don’t have any relations,” she added.

Educational and medical aid

Ofir’s third hat is that of humanitarian aid work.

“The people here in Israel live with a collective memory of the Holocaust and what we had to go through, and especially the world’s shameful silence.

“During the Arab Spring we all witnessed atrocities carried out by the likes of ISIS and Boko Haram; there were about 250 organizations fighting each other across the Middle East, and many uninvolved citizens were heavily impacted.

“I felt like I couldn’t keep quiet, which is why I started delving into the issue of humanitarian aid in... all kinds of countries,” she said.

Here, too, Ofir worked with many countries that don’t necessarily recognize Israel.

Her main focus was establishing and operating schooling systems in complex areas, in an attempt “to save orphans who could easily be kidnapped and become the next generation of terrorists,” as she put it.

According to Ofir, schools provide a solution in terms of meals and an educational framework, but can also become vehicles to promote education for tolerance in war-stricken zones, in a field reminiscent of Ofir’s own dissertation.

“All of this was still not enough. We also set up vocational schools to provide [children] with a profession that will accompany them for life. Many children suffer from severe physical and psychological impediments. We also set up schools for arts and computer professions, as well as classes for blind children who learn braille.”

In these schools, Ofir is responsible for much of the logistic operation, as well as building the curriculum.

“As time passed, representatives from more countries which I had never dreamed would need assistance turned to us for assistance, including Italy, Nepal, and Myanmar. When you’re already operating these projects, it’s very hard to say no to anyone,” she added.

Ofir also took part in organizing rescue flights, bringing Israelis who were stuck abroad after October 7– due to airlines canceling flights – back to Israel, in addition to other projects which “happen under the radar and will remain secret,” as she framed it.

Some humanitarian operations in which Ofir was involved included setting up field hospitals in various countries. Then, in an ironic turn of events, Ofir found herself leading a project to establish a hospital in the Arava region in Israel.

“I never thought that my humanitarian work would lead me to set up a humanitarian hospital in my own country, but that’s reality for you,” Ofir added ironically, yet excitedly.

“The local population in the Arava region has quadrupled since October 7, due to the arrival of evacuees, and there is an urgent need for solutions in the fields of schooling and hospitals. Between Soroka [Medical Center] in Beersheba and Joseftal Hospital in Eilat, there are 240 km. without a single proper medical center. Unfortunately, evacuees will remain there for a long time, due to the situation, so we turned a packing house into a school, and are now finalizing the establishment of a medical center in the Arava Regional Council,” she added.

Do people who work with you know that you’re Israeli?

“They definitely know that I’m Israeli, and I sometimes even travel with my Israeli passport.

“In January 2021, I brought two sports delegations from Israel to Saudi Arabia, which was the first shattering of glass ceilings in terms of Israelis in the country.

“Such was the case with the Abu Dhabi Rally, which took place even before the Abraham Accords; and since then it has become normal to bring [Israeli sporting delegations into the UAE] with Israeli passports.“It turns out that sports are important in processes of normalization,” Ofir explained.

The first openly Israeli delegation Ofir led to Saudi Arabia took place in the distant reality of September 7, one month before the Hamas massacre, when five Israeli cybersecurity companies arrived in Dammam.

“All these companies openly presented their logos, and I represented them on stage. There were 12 Israelis in total, a beautiful delegation, and it made several headlines,” she added.

Last week Ofir also took part in the Security Middle East Conference in Riyadh.

“I came to know Saudi Arabia back in 2015,” she said, adding that she cannot elaborate on the circumstances. “Saudi Arabia has gone through a beautiful process of social pluralism,” Ofir added.

“In the beginning I wasn’t supposed to talk about where I’m from, and nowadays I’m openly Israeli. Women’s lives have also changed for the better. For me, going there and speaking about our amazing patents and start-ups conveys a message that it’s possible to be a businesswoman and a mother and to speak in front of a crowd; that nothing is impossible,” she added excitedly.

Ofir holds that another proof of this “social pluralism” in Saudi Arabia includes a shift in the relation toward the media. “Up until around 2013 Saudi Arabia attempted to avoid headlines, but that has changed. I think they understood that the media can become a tool to tell their story, even to promote the country.”

Ofir also explained that, while in the beginning she was asked not to publish anything about her visits to Saudi Arabia, nowadays she is more than encouraged to promote them, “though still only after returning to Israel,” she added, smiling.

“Needless to say, it is extremely important to maintain people’s dignity, respect their requests, and build trust.”

How exact are all the reports in the media of an upcoming normalization of ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia?

Ofir smiled. “This is probably my Achilles’ heel. I am completely cut off from the media, so I’m not aware of what they say there. On the other hand, I am also not influenced by reports, and I ‘push buttons’ on the ground according to my knowledge and fields of expertise, which is a good thing.

“Normalization is a long process that has been happening for 20 years. Interactions and business cooperation between Israel and Saudi Arabia are slowly rising above the radar. There’s a Jewish community emerging in Riyadh, and there is even kosher food to be found there,” she added.

“In any case, it’s a process that is happening right here and right now. It might take some more time, but I don’t see it stopping. I see a warming of relations, a lot of caution, under very great pressures, but the trend is towards normalization and nothing will stop it.

“What is most important to know is that the process of normalization does not begin with a handshake of leaders but, rather, is built slowly and safely, layer upon layer,” Ofir concluded.

How did the war affect these normalization attempts?

“October 7 brought the Gulf countries into a shock. We have to remember that these are monarchical countries, while Israel is a unique democracy in the region, with a very problematic election system that is difficult to work with. Running elections every two years, constantly changing ministers. From their point of view, these political issues affect the perception of stability, which is also the case for October 7.

“The terrible massacre challenged the perception of Israel’s stability in their eyes. And certainly, the first few days after the massacre were chaotic, though now we’re in a completely different place thanks to the great people living in this country.

“By the way, I received a great deal of empathy from friends in the Gulf, dozens of WhatsApp messages and phone calls and genuine concern for my family,” Ofir elaborated.

“In any case, instability is one of the elements that many in the media and academia ignore as an influential point in the potential building of relations between Israel and its neighbors. Understandably, they seek to establish relations with a stable country, as they face many pressures and need to be reassured that by going forward with such a move, they are doing the right thing.

“There are also other things that influence their decisions, such as American pressure, which is not always applied in the correct direction,” she added.

Speaking of the Gulf – what are your thoughts about the role of Qatar?

“I believe Qatar never wanted to find itself in the situation it is in today. For years they acted like what they are: the richest country in the world, with no real army, which only wants to survive in harsh diplomatic conditions. Yet now they found themselves in a place where they support terror and Hamas,” Ofir explained.

They dragged themselves into this whole story and lost their place. This is because, at the end of the day, they can’t really deal with Hamas. And so, they must pass the baton on to other countries.

“By the way, Qatar and Israel have had relations for many years, more than any other country in the Gulf. The Qatari mission has been acting in Jerusalem even before the Abraham Accords. This bridge was burned on October 7.

Everything blew up in their face, and now they just can’t deal with what they created. Unfortunately, they are unable to give an unequivocal answer and unable to take sides, because almost by definition they cannot afford not to get along with all sides, being stuck between Iran and Saudi Arabia as an example.”

Do you feel safe walking around Gulf countries as an Israeli?

“It’s just so ironic that I feel more comfortable walking around Riyadh than, say, Brussels. There is so much antisemitism around the world, especially in the West. In Europe and the US antisemitism is on the rise, and I hope this somehow changes soon. But at the end of the day there’s only one country in which Jews can live free of antisemitism and directly influence decision-making on the national level.”

What would be your final message to our readers?

“Many times we experience more failures than successes, but this cannot stop us from trying.

“One phrase I say a lot, especially in Israel, is that if 20-30 years ago Peres said ‘dare to dream,’ today it is no longer enough to dare to dream. We must now dare to make that dream come true, break the ice with our neighbors, because no one else will do it for us.”