Israeli Security Advisor Greets Morocco in Local Arabic Dialect After Historic Flight

"Our Moroccan brothers, peace be upon you (...). We thank God and praise him for this day... I have nothing to hide, everything is written on my face and comes from my heart full of joy," he said, recalling that he is the son of an immigrant family of Moroccan origin, and that his brothers, sisters and cousins were born, raised and educated in Morocco.

For him, the arrival of the Israeli delegation in Morocco on board an El Al flight, the first direct commercial flight between the two countries, is a "historic event in every sense of the word". Mr. Ben-Shabbat paid tribute to King Mohammed VI for "his foresight and courage which have enabled the resumption of relations between the two states, to build a bridge between the Moroccan and Israeli peoples".

Israel’s wish, he said, is to cooperate with Morocco in the fields of aviation, science, health, agriculture and other sectors. "Morocco and Israel can play an important role in bringing about change in the region in the interest of the Moroccan and Israeli peoples, but also of the entire region," assured the Israeli official.

On Tuesday, the Israeli-American delegation led by Jared Kushner, senior adviser to outgoing US President Donald Trump, arrived in Rabat. King Mohammed VI granted them an audience at the end of which Morocco, the United States and Israel signed a joint declaration.