In latest Abraham Accords deal, Israel opens offices in Morocco
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid oversaw a mezuzah being affixed on the office in Rabat on a two-day visit to the country
Michael Daventry is Jewish News’s foreign and broadcast editor
Israel has formally opened offices in Morocco in the latest enlargement of its diplomatic network after the Abraham Accords were signed last year.
A plaque was unveiled and mezuzah affixed to the building in Rabat in a ceremony on Thursday attended by Foreign Minister Yair Lapid and Mohcine Jazouli, Morocco’s deputy foreign minister.
The previous evening Lapid met his Moroccan counterpart Nasser Bourita and said the upgraded ties would bring economic benefits to both countries.
The Abraham Accords have seen Israel establish diplomatic relations with several Arab countries for the first time.
Morocco has historically been closer to Israel — an Israeli foreign minister last visited the country in 2003 — but relations broke down after the second Palestinian intifada broke out.
Morocco and Israel relaunched direct flights last month, and during a meeting at the Moroccan foreign ministry on Wednesday, Bourita and Lapid signed three cooperation agreements dealing with diplomatic consultation, culture and air transit.
“Our ties with Israel are unlike any other ties,” Bourita said, adding that Morocco’s Jewish heritage was a core component of its identity.
במסגרת פגישתי עם שר החוץ המרוקאי, בוריטה, העברתי אגרת חתומה של נשיא המדינה @Isaac_Herzog למלך מרוקו.
באגרת הזמין הנשיא, את מלך מרוקו מוחמד ה-6 לביקור בישראל. האגרת של הנשיא למלך מרוקו מסמלת את החשיבות של היחסים בין שתי המדינות ואת המחויבות העמוקה של ישראל להסכם בין שני העמים. pic.twitter.com/SFyyohbK53— יאיר לפיד – Yair Lapid???? (@yairlapid) August 12, 2021
But reiterating Morocco’s long-standing support for the Palestinians, Bourita urged all parties “to pave the way for a political solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict based on the two-state solution.”
The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan are the other Arab-majority countries to have normalised relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords.
Later on Thursday Lapid was due to visit Casablanca’s Temple Beth-El, a centrepiece of the country’s historic Jewish community.
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