A senior Moroccan diplomat said Monday that while Rabat welcomes the resumption of relations with Jerusalem, "The Palestinian issue is important for all Moroccans."
"I prefer referring to it as a resumption of relations, rather than a normalization. A resumption of diplomatic channels and different mechanisms that already existed between Israel and Morocco," Minister Delegate to the Moroccan Foreign Ministry Mohcine Jazouli told i24NEWS.
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Jazouli went on to say, "Judaism is embedded in Moroccan culture," adding that "Jewish history would appear in school textbooks and would soon be taught."
"Morocco has always tried to work for peace in this region. The logic of His Majesty King Mohammed VI is always the same: two peoples, two states living side by side safely and peacefully," he said, adding, "When we talk about the two-state solution, we mean the state of Israel and the state of Palestine."
Jazouli described the "mechanisms" that would be resumed between the two countries, including "direct flights to allow pilgrims to come to Morocco" or even "the reopening of liaison offices which had already been opened in 1994, to allow the resumption of diplomatic ties."
The minister concluded by wishing "all Israelis and Palestinians to move towards lasting peace."
Also on Monday, Moroccan authorities prevented a protest in the capital Rabat against the kingdom's move to normalize ties with Israel.
Heavy police presence backed by water cannons and anti-riot forces deployed in the main avenue leading to Parliament Square, where a group of pro-Palestinian rights organizations had planned the sit-in.
Police prevented demonstrators from reaching the square.
Two prominent activists, Sion Assidon, Morocco coordinator for the international boycott, divestment, sanctions movement, and lawyer Abderrahman Ben Amrou, were escorted away by authorities and asked to leave the area.
"Unfortunately, political normalization ... comes after a long process of economic, agricultural, tourism and academic ties," Assidon, a Moroccan Jew, told Reuters.
There are nearly 1 million Jews hailing from Morocco in Israel and last year 70,000 visited the kingdom, which recognizes the Jewish community as a constituent of its national identity.
A local authority source said the protest was not authorized, citing a COVID-19 emergency decree.
Hassan Bennajeh, a leading member of the outlawed Adl Wal Ihssane, one of several organizations that called for the protest, said the ban reflected a "weak political position", saying that authorities had allowed a gathering in support of the deal in the same place on Sunday.
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A core element of the deal was US recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. A decades-old dispute over the territory has pitted Morocco against the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, which seeks to establish an independent state.
A rally was held on Saturday in Western Sahara's largest city Laayoune by the opposition Istiqlal party bringing together some 30,000 people in support of the deal.
The main political parties in Morocco have welcomed the deal with Israel and the U.S. recognition of Moroccan sovereignty. Islamist groups have rejected normalization.
i24NEWS contributed to this report.
