First documents of historic Israeli-Morocco deal likely signed in Rabat
Rhe Israeli-US delegation will board an El Al plan for what will be the first direct flight from Ben-Gurion Airport to Morocco's capital city of Rabat.
By OMRI NAHMIAS, TOVAH LAZAROFFUpdated: DECEMBER 20, 2020 22:52A view shows empty streets after authorities prevented a protest in the capital Rabat against the kingdom's move to normalise ties with Israel following a deal brokered by US President Donald Trump on December 14, 2020.(photo credit: REUTERS/STRINGER)
The first documents of the historic Israeli-Moroccan normalization deal will likely be signed in Rabat this week during a visit by White House special adviser Jared Kushner and Israeli National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat.Earlier this month, the two countries declared the normalization of ties, but have yet to sign any agreements to solidify that understanding."It's our intention to sign numerous Memoranda of Understandings that will help bring these normalization agreements to life and bring substantive improvements to the lives of people both in Israel and in Morocco," Avi Berkowitz, special US representative for international negotiations, told The Jerusalem Post.The two countries are expected to sign agreements on civil aviation and agriculture, among others.Kushner is expected to land in Israel on Monday. The White House delegation will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials, Berkowitz said.They will discuss the progress of the Abraham Accords with their Israeli peers, "and talk about the progress we made over the last few years."Under the US-brokered Abraham Accords, Israel in the last four months has ratified normalization deals with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Sudan and Morocco have also declared their intent to normalize ties.On Tuesday, the Israeli-US delegation will board an El Al plan for what will be the first direct flight from Ben-Gurion Airport to Morocco's capital city of Rabat."On Tuesday, we will take a direct flight to Morocco and bring with us an Israeli delegation which will further increase the relationship between the two countries," Berkowitz said.El Al said that in honor of the occasion, the El Al flight LY555 will be decorated with a Hamsa, the flags of the three countries and the word peace written in three languages.
The Israeli, Moroccan and US flags will be seen on the El Al flight from Israel to Rabat alongside the Hamsa and the words for peace in English, Hebrew and Arabic. (Photo credit: El Al)Unlike the deals with Sudan, the UAE and Bahrain, Morocco and Israel had low-level diplomatic ties from 1994-2000 that feel apart when the Second Intifada started.
