Morocco and Israel to discuss normalised relations
A joint US-Israeli delegation is expected to arrive in Morocco today to discuss the recently established normalisation agreement between Israel and Morocco.
US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner will lead the US delegation, while the Israeli delegation will be led by National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat. The groups will travel via an EL-Al flight from Tel Aviv to Rabat, the first direct flight from Israel to Morocco. Following the visit, regular service is likely to open between Ben-Gurion airport and the larger airports in Morocco.
Expect Moroccan and Israeli leadership to make public statements today cementing the deal. As part of the US-brokered agreement—the fourth such deal between Arab countries and Israel in as many months—the US has agreed to recognise Moroccan sovereignty over the Western Sahara, a disputed territory claimed by Morocco since the 1970s.
This policy shift resulted in the Polisario Front—the main independence movement within Western Sahara—declaring an end to the 1991 ceasefire and promising a full resumption of combat, effectively nullifying decades of UN mediation and US-led diplomatic efforts to end the conflict peacefully. Polisario enjoys backing from the Algerian government, so renewed conflict has the potential spark conflict between Algiers and Rabat.
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