Morocco pledges to normalize relations with Israel amid U.S. push The news was first tweeted by Trump. However, there were rumors three months ago when Israel signed agreements to normalize relations with the UAE and Bahrain. The Palestinian side was sad and helpless.
The Islamic North African country of Morocco became the fourth Muslim country to normalize relations with Israel in recent times, following the United Arab Emirates ˎBahrain and Sudan. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed it as a historic step forward, while the Palestinians currently have dim feelings.
Archived photo: Palestinian President Abbas
Palestine feels helpless
There was no swift official reaction from the Palestinian Authority, but in a call with Abbas, Morocco’s King Mohammed VI said he would not abandon his role in defending the legitimate interests of the Palestinian people. Morocco’s consistent public position on the Palestinian issue has been to oppose Israeli colonization of the West Bank and to support a two-state solution model. The Palestinians, for their part, feel betrayed by this again. Moreover, the Moroccan king currently heads the Jerusalem Committee for the protection of the cultural heritage of the holy city. However, this does not come as a surprise to Palestinian analysts, as Morocco has been in a state of ambivalence for the past few months.
Trump’s Win-Win Model
Another related French report in our RFI noted that Morocco’s informal ties with Israel have been strong before. The U.S. has pressured Rabat from time to time with the aim of normalizing Morocco’s relations with Israel. Trump, seeking re-election as U.S. president, has viewed the signing of these agreements to normalize relations with Israel with goodwill. This time, Trump traded the U.S. position when he signed a declaration in which Washington recognized Morocco’s territorial sovereignty over the Western Sahara.
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