Morocco’s King Sets Israeli Visit on Palestinian Peace Talks Condition

In his capacity as Head of the Al Quds Committee, notes the Israeli newspaper, the King of Morocco intends to resume the role of mediator that his country embodied during the conclusion of the peace agreement with Egypt and the Oslo and Casablanca agreements. The monarch, whose visit will have to be prepared by the new Israeli ambassador to Rabat, is said to have even asked to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

By proposing the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Sovereign would like, according to the media, to strengthen his position by anticipating the reaction of the new American administration, which risks renouncing the recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara.

Mohammed VI is also said to have expressed his wish to come and pray at the Al Aqsa Mosque during his stay in Jerusalem, adds the Israeli newspaper, noting that the Sovereign could however be prevented from doing so by the Grand Mufti of the Mosque, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein. Indeed, last August, the latter had recalled a fatwa prohibiting access to the mosque to citizens of Arab countries that have normalized their relations with Israel.