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Rabat – Morocco is likely set to host the second Negev Forum in mid-July, the Times of Israel reported on Monday.
Quoting a diplomatic source, the news report said that the official date for the forum will be confirmed in a steering committee meeting.
The Negev Forum convenes high-level officials from the countries that signed the US-brokered Abraham Accords with Israel.
The accords normalized diplomatic relationships between Israel and several countries including the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, along with Egypt, and the US.
Israel hosted the first Negev summit in March 2022.
Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita traveled to Israel to participate in the summit, which aimed to consolidate partnerships between countries that have signed the Accords with Israel.
Morocco’s participation in the event comes as part of a shared objective from Rabat and Tel Aviv to boost bilateral ties at all levels – including security cooperation and trade.
The commitment has been frequently recalled by both Morocco and Israel since their decision to re-establish relations in December 2020.
According to Israeli media, Israel aims to change the name of the s Negev summit to “something more regional and less Israel-specific.”
“The final decision on the name has yet to be made,” The Times of Israel added.
In May, Israeli media said the US requested a change in the forum’s name, following the wishes of the Arab members of the Abraham Accords for a more generic name, according to Channel 13.
“A diplomat from an Arab country confirmed that the request was made, calling it a positive development that could open the way for more countries to join,” the Times of Israel said.
The plan for the summit comes amid Israel’s plan to convince more Arab and Muslim countries to re-establish ties with Tel Aviv.
Israeli news outlet Haaretz said in May that the Israeli government attempted to get a “Muslim-majority African country” to participate in the summit.
The country which has not been identified, has official ties with Israel, the news outlet added.
