Ever since Morocco normalized diplomatic relations with Israel in late 2020, the government and the royal Cabinet of King Mohamed VI have had to engage in an awkward balancing act. As they nurtured fast-growing political, economic and military relations with Israel, authorities had to simultaneously portray Rabat’s official position as remaining actively pro-Palestinian.
Morocco’s stance, like that of other countries that signed up to the Abraham Accords, was always going to be a challenge. For years, the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis has been marked by sporadic clashes between Israeli forces and armed groups in Gaza, the ongoing encroachment of illegal Israeli settlements amid violence in the West Bank, and diminishing hope for a genuine political resolution.
But after the brutal attacks perpetrated by Hamas on Israeli civilians and military personnel on Oct. 7 and the ruthless and escalating war unleashed by the Israeli military on Gaza in response, Morocco’s stance is close to untenable.