Israel and its moderate allies in the region “must build a new strategic alliance” to block Iran’s continued expansion in the region, former Israeli Minister Brig. Gen. (Res.) Ephraim Lapid told Al-Monitor’s "On Israel" podcast last week. And that is precisely what Israel is doing, at an accelerated pace, as reflected in this week’s visit to Bahrain, on Feb. 3, by Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz to sign a security cooperation agreement between the two countries.

It was the second such pact with an Arab country in recent months, following Gantz’s signing of a similar deal with Morocco during a late November visit to Rabat. A week ago, a delegation of senior Israeli security experts reportedly visited the United Arab Emirates to examine how Israel could help the kingdom with advance warning and interception of missiles and drones launched at its territory by Iranian-backed Houthi forces from Yemen.

These are only the developments that have been reported publicly, attesting to intensive behind-the-scenes activity with Arab and Muslim countries, such as Saudi Arabia, that have yet to establish formal relations with Israel or reveal their clandestine ones.

“A new Middle East NATO is taking shape in front of our very eyes,” was how one senior security official put it to Al-Monitor. Asked whether this means that Israel is the region’s new defense anchor given the hurried American pullout from the region in recent years, the official answered on condition of anonymity, “Yes, and no. That is in fact what is going on and we can contribute to the security of some of the most important countries in the region. No, because Israel cannot be the United States. Israel is a small state and not a world power or global police. That said, establishing an alliance comprised of Israel and moderate Sunni states in the region would constitute a powerful force multiplier that no one in the region will be able to ignore. Tehran is looking on all of this with great concern.”