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Rabat – Moroccan association Morocco Coexistence and NGO Sharaka on Monday organized an event under the title “Salam Shalom” (meaning “peace” in Arabic and Hebrew) hosted in Rabat, in celebration of Morocco and Israel’s second anniversary of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations.
The event was organized under the theme: “Morocco Israel Strong Partnership and Exceptional Alliance.” Several diplomatic figures were present, including the Head of the Israeli Liaison Office in Rabat Alona Fisher-Kamm, as well as representatives from the US embassy in Rabat. In addition, the event included a musical ceremony featuring the Israeli musical orchestra Firqat Alnoor.
Israeli orchestra Firqat Alnoor performing at the event
Speaking on the occasion, Fisher-Kamm said she was happy to celebrate the second anniversary of the resumption of Morocco-Israel relations, pledging that the two countries will double their efforts to further cooperate in the fields of industry, education, science, and culture.
In addition, she expressed her satisfaction with the “concrete achievements” that Morocco and Israel have fulfilled over the past two years.
Head of the Israeli Liaison Office in Rabat Alona Fisher-Kamm
In an interview with Morocco World News, the Head of the political section at the US embassy in Rabat David Fisher said that it has been “impressive to see the increased strengthening of the relations [between Morocco and Israel] in areas of people-to-people exchanges, tourism, business, security, healthcare, and agriculture.”
Fisher described Morocco and Israel’s ways of cooperation, which has taken off during the past two years, as “astounding.” The official added, “We’ve seen a doubling of trade, we’re seen tens of thousands of Israelis visiting their ancestral homeland, as well as just Israeli tourists.”
The Head of the political section at the US embassy in Rabat David Fisher (left)
He emphasized that Morocco can serve as a model of how nations in the Middle East and the Arab World “can become closer with Israel and develop these cultural, diplomatic and cultural relations.”
Highlighting King Mohammed VI’s contributions in this regard, Fisher said that Moroccan-Israeli relations will “further blossom, and expand.”
Attendees at the “Salam Shalom” event
He hopes that other Arab countries would follow Morocco’s lead, arguing that normalizing diplomatic ties with Israel would “support regional peace, prosperity, and growth.”
For his part, President of the Moroccan-Israeli Friendship Association (MIFA) Mustapha Ezzarghani highlighted the “strong relationship” that Morocco and Israel were able to build throughout the past two years amid a complicated global context.
President of the Moroccan-Israeli Friendship Association (MIFA) Mustapha Ezzarghani speaking at the event
“We can definitely say right now that Morocco and Israel are better friends than they were two years ago,” Ezzarghani told Morocco World News.
He added that the MIFA association, which is based in Georgia, the US, took part in several programs whose aim is to build a “strong people-to-people relationship,” pledging to create more programs that seek to “build more bridges” and strengthen the Morocco-Israel friendship.
Attendees at the event
“What we accomplished in two years is tremendous, and what we can accomplish in five, 10, 25 years is just unimaginable,” Ezzarghani stressed, hoping to reach a point where Morocco and Israel’s bond is “irreversible.”
Speaking at the event, the Founding President of The “Morocco Coexistence” association Faycal Marjani touched on the importance of promoting and fostering the values of religious tolerance and coexistence among Moroccans.
Associate Professor of the Practice of Interfaith Relations Abdullah Antepli
Marjani highlighted Morocco and Israeli’s distinct relations, explaining that the two countries share deep historical ties and that Israel is home to around one million Moroccan Jews.
