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The Moroccan Front for Palestine and Against Normalization strongly protested the reception of an Israeli warship in the port of Tangier on June 6, 2024. The warship, named “INS Komemiyut”, stopped to refuel and resupply before continuing its voyage to the port of Haifa. This action raises the question of King Mohammed VI’s positioning in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, between historical support for the Palestinian people and Morocco’s policy of normalizing relations with Israel.
If the Israeli warships welcomed in the Mediterranean in Tangier are controversial, it is because Morocco is not well suited to the Spanish position. Indeed, in similar cases, Spain The latest move follows the refusal to resupply the Mariam Danica, a ship carrying arms bound for Israel. On May 19, 2024, Madrid banned the merchant ship from India from stopping at its ports. The decision, welcomed by pro-Palestinian organizations, reflects Spain’s firmer stance on Palestinian tensions, a significant difference from Morocco’s policy.
Spain’s refusal was seen as a stance against Israeli military escalation, in contrast to Morocco’s decision to allow the Komiut warship to refuel in Tangier. This double speech by Mohammed VI, the chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, who is responsible for defending the interests of the Palestinian people and a central figure in his country’s reconciliation with Israel, sparked fierce controversy and demonstrations in Morocco. Globes recalls that Morocco and Israel have signed A military cooperation agreement was signed in November 2021.
Strengthening defense ties between Morocco and Israel
Since the signing of the agreement, defense relations between Morocco and Israel have been greatly strengthened. In February 2022, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) signed an agreement worth more than $500 million to provide Morocco with air and missile defense systems. Barak MXcapable of defending against a variety of missile and drone threats. Such cooperation is seen as a betrayal of the Palestinian cause.
Since the outbreak of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Mohammed VI has often been criticized for not supporting Palestine sufficiently. Even because it is considered close to Israel. As a result, demonstrations and protests by supporters of the Palestinian cause are frequent in Morocco. The Moroccan Front for Supporting Palestine and Against Normalization has issued a warning on June 1, prohibiting ships carrying weapons to Israel from passing through Moroccan waters.
This ambiguous position of Mohammed VI stems from the priority that the Sharif monarch places on the Western Sahara issue. This a priori priority obliterates all other priorities. As the King stated in his speech.
The Moroccan Front for Palestine and Against Normalization plans to include this issue in its next demonstrations, with a special emphasis on Tangier, in order to mobilize public opinion against military cooperation with Israel.
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