Moroccan King Mohammed VI congratulated Wednesday Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on taking office, becoming the first non-Gulf Arab leader to do so.
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In his letter, the monarch wished the new prime minister success and emphasized that the kingdom was "determined to continue its active role and its best efforts to advance a just and lasting peace in the Middle East."
Bennett was also congratulated by Crown Prince of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Crown Prince of Bahrain Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
Several countries have so far held back from congratulating Israel's new leader, among them Egypt and Jordan.
A senior official at the Egyptian embassy in Tel Aviv explained to Israel Hayom that the delay did not stem from a deliberate disregard for the political change in the Jewish state.
"A congratulatory letter will most likely be sent to Prime Minister Bennett soon, but you must also understand our considerations. We had a very good relationship with the Netanyahu administration, which was mostly based on the security and intelligence spheres, and only recently have we started to advance with the government a program to boost tourism from Israel to Sharm El-Sheikh, and we hope this process continues."
According to the official, "the leadership in Cairo is well aware of the public's general dislike of Israel, which became even worse during the operation in Gaza [Operation Guardian of the Walls], and due to Egypt's efforts to broker a ceasefire. As soon as the situation calms down, congratulations will follow."
Similarly, a top official from Amman said: "During Netanyahu's 12 years in office, the relations between Israel and Jordan deteriorated in an unprecedented way, and there was quite a bit of bad blood between Netanyahu and King Abdullah II. The king has an excellent relationship with [prime minister-designate] Yair Lapid. One could go as far as to say that the two are good friends."
He also pointed out that the Jordanian people are not keen on Israel or Bennett, "who they perceive as someone more radical than Netanyahu," but the government would offer its congratulations as soon as "the situation becomes clearer."
Sudan has not congratulated Bennett either, even though the country struck a peace deal with Israel as part of the Abraham Accords. Nor has Palestinian Authority President Mansour Abbas.
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