Israel’s Defense Minister Heads for Morocco Next Week to Sign  “Defense Deal”

Israeli media outlets have revealed that Israel’s  Minister of Defense Beni Gantz is going to fly to Rabat, the capital city of Morocco, next week to beat what is so-called a” defense deal” between the two countries.

The Times of Israel (TOI)”, an Israeli daily newspaper, pointed out that Gantz will meet with his  Moroccan counterpart and Foreign Minister over the official visit.

The TOI indicated that a defense deal is expected to be signed.

The visit comes amidst the atmosphere of flourishing ties between Israel and the Kingdom of Morocco following the inking of an agreement to normalize the dual diplomatic relations last year.

Israel’s Foreign Minister  Yair Lapid visited Rabat last August to inaugurate officially the Israeli liaison office in Rabat.

Lapid met a number of Moroccan officials and signed some agreements.

The national Moroccan airlines announced last September that it launched weekly, direct regular flights to Israel.

The Moroccan carrier will start with three flights a week then it increases the number to five flights later.

The TOI affirmed that linking the two business capitals in Casablanca, in Morocco and Tel Aviv in Israel, will kick off on   December 12, two days after marking the first anniversary of resuming relations between Israel and Morocco resulting in a deal brokered by the former US Administration.

The old Jewish community in Morocco is the largest in North Africa.

Some 3000 Jews are still live in Morocco, meanwhile, there are 700 thousand Moroccan-descendant Israelis and have warm relations with their origin homeland (Morocco).

The TOI went on to say that ten thousands of Israelis come to Morocco every year, during the era precedent to Corona pandemic, via a third country.

Morocco and Israel established political relations in 1993 but Rabat severed ties with Israel at the beginning of the Palestinian Uprising (Intifada) 2000.