Moroccans Protest Against Strengthening Ties With Israel

Morocco is experiencing a surge in popular unrest amidst improving diplomatic relations with Israel. Following a period of severed ties, Israeli Foreign Minister Gidon Sa'ar met with his Moroccan counterpart Nasser Bourita approximately ten days ago, agreeing to elevate relations and reinstate ambassadors. Last August, Transportation Minister Miri Regev announced the resumption of direct flights, stating, "Soon the first flight will depart after three years, a direct flight from Ben Gurion Airport to Marrakech," with plans to extend this service to Casablanca later.

Despite political gains pursued by the Moroccan authorities in Rabat, there is significant popular opposition. Last week, thousands of demonstrators took to the streets waving Palestinian flags and chanting "The people want to overthrow normalization," leading to confrontations and dozens of arrests.

Hassan Alawi, a member of the Moroccan Movement Against Normalization, stated the protest's objective: "We came to raise our voice as the Moroccan people of all stripes, to condemn the Zionist entity and normalization, and to affirm our rejection of the embassy, and our rejection of the entity and its presence in Morocco in any form whatsoever."

The political landscape is also tense following last week's parliamentary elections, which saw Aziz Hanaoui, Secretary-General of the Moroccan Authority Against Normalization and a member of the Islamist Justice and Development Party, enter parliament. Hanaoui strongly criticized the rapprochement with Israel, endorsing the struggle against what he called "this Zionist cancer that has infiltrated our systems, our people, and our cultural, political, and sovereign structures," highlighting the challenge authorities face in advancing relations with Islamist movements.