Morocco buys spy satellite from Israel in deal worth $1bn

Morocco intends to acquire a spy satellite from the Israeli Aerospace Industries (IAI) as part of a deal worth $1 billion, local media reported yesterday.

This comes a day after the Israeli company announced that it had signed a contract worth $1 billion to supply one of its systems to a “third party” that it did not specify, adding that “the expected completion date of the deal is 2029.”

The company, which manufactures missile defence systems and drones used by the occupation army as part of its war on the Gaza Strip, said in a statement to Israeli regulatory authorities that the deal is scheduled to be implemented over a five-year period.

The Moroccan news websites Le Desk and Le360 ​quoted Israeli sources in Rabat as saying that the contract stipulates that the company will provide the Ofek 13 spy satellite, which will replace two satellites produced by Airbus and Thales.

The head of the Israeli mission in Rabat and the Moroccan Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for a comment from Reuters. In 2021, Israel and Morocco signed a defence agreement covering intelligence, industry cooperation and military procurement.

READ: Israel’s BlueBird to open drone factory in Morocco

The Israel Aerospace Industries Company notified the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange on Tuesday that it had signed a deal to supply military equipment worth $1 billion dollars over a period of approximately five years with a country it identified as a “third party.”

Yedioth Ahronoth revealed on Tuesday that the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Israel Aerospace Industries Corporation, former Minister of Security and former head of the Labour Party, Amir Peretz, is currently visiting Morocco, and revealed predictions that he is there to sign the deal.

The paper also quoted an informed source as saying, “The global demand for military equipment of all types and from all companies is at its peak.”

He added, “there is talk about a Western arms race in the face of the threat of the axis of evil. This is a golden opportunity for Israeli military industries because their equipment and technologies have proven their effectiveness on the battlefield – in the war on Gaza.”