Morocco hosts conference to promote normalisation with Israel

Morocco hosted on Monday a conference on education and coexistence with the participation of Israel and Arab countries despite popular protests.

Organised by the N7 Initiative, which seeks to broaden and deepen normalisation between Israel and its Arab neighbours, the three-day conference was attended by representatives from Sudan, Jordan, Bahrain, the UAE, the United States and Israel.

“Since the Abraham Accords, progress in Israeli-Arab bilateral relations has been impressive,” said Daniel Shapiro, N7 Initiative director and former US ambassador to Israel.

“Now this progress must be accompanied by building multilateral programs and institutions that lead to real regional integration, and to show the benefits of normalisation to the citizens of these countries,” he added.

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Speaking at the conference, William Wechsler, senior director of the Rafik Hariri Centre and Middle East Programs at the Atlantic Council, said the governments of the region and the US administration consider the N7 Initiative a “key partner”.

“It is important for the future of normalisation that the younger generations in the region interact and learn from each other,” he added.

Israel and Morocco announced the resumption of diplomatic relations in December 2020, after they were suspended in 2000. Morocco became the fourth Arab country to normalise ties with the occupation state of Israel after the UAE, Bahrain and Sudan.

Moroccan bodies and parties have categorically rejected the normalisation of relations with Israel and held numerous protests against the move.

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