Between Pacifying the Angry Moroccan Public and Preserving “Gains”: The Dilemmas Facing the Palace in the Wake of Gaza War
BY: Hana Saada
ALGIERS- November 13, 2023 – The war waged by the Zionist occupation forces in the Gaza Strip is imposing tough choices on the Moroccan government. The Kingdom finds itself in the delicate position of navigating a middle ground between pacifying an angered Moroccan populace and safeguarding the supposed gains of normalization.
Morocco has yet to respond to calls for severing diplomatic ties with the Zionist entity. Analysts affirm that in the long run, the future of normalization and its prospects for expansion are likely to hinge on the outcome of the war, which may dissuade other nations from joining the Abraham Accords.
The ongoing war is expected to deter other Arab countries from establishing official relations with the occupied entity, deeming it a high-risk and costly endeavor. Such a move could put their stability under immense pressure and potentially ignite a regional conflagration.
The current war has demonstrated to some Arab governments that the Zionist entity is unreliable and could pose a burden rather than an enhancement to their regional interests.
Courtney Farrer, an academic in the Middle East and South Asia Studies department at Emory University in Georgia, USA, pointed out that the Bahraini Parliament declared the suspension of economic relations with the Zionist entity last week. Bahrain also recalled its ambassador to the entity, and flights between Tel Aviv and Manama were suspended.
However, in the United Arab Emirates, the head of the Defense, Interior, and Foreign Affairs Committee went so far as to describe the agreements as “their future.” Air travel between the UAE and the Zionist entity continues as before.
Farrer explained that the future of these agreements depends partly on the “resolution of the conflict” and the role played by Arab countries in the process. She also noted that it is too early to gauge the extent of these effects in the long term.
“We have different parliaments, like the Tunisian parliament, discussing legislation that criminalizes normalization with Israel… Other countries, like Kuwait, already have such legislation. It is evident that if these laws are enacted, they will complicate efforts to expand the Abraham Accords,” Farrer stated.
She added, “In countries where normalization already exists, I don’t think we’ll witness a complete reversal, but perhaps it’s too early to know for sure.”
