Three direct flights between Casablanca and Tel Aviv will start on December 21

Marruecos e Israel tendrán una vía aérea directa

photo_camera REUTERS/REGIS DUVIGNAU - Boeing 737 of CN-ROP Royal Air Maroc

Royal Air Maroc (RAM) announced that Morocco and Israel have created a direct route between Casablanca and Tel Aviv. Passengers will start travelling between the two countries from 12 December this year, with three flights a week, although according to the airline itself it will soon increase to five flights a week. This development is the result of the resumption of relations between the two territories, orchestrated by the US Administration, by former President Donald Trump, in a business-based agreement, following the recognition of Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara by the American country.

This comes after three months in which Israel returned to normality and began launching trade trips with the Alawi country. These began in October, operated by Royal Air Maroc and Air Arabia, between Tel Aviv and Marrakech. In addition, another direct route to the city of Essaouira is planned. It is also worth noting that the first official visit to the region by Yair Lapid, the Israeli Foreign Minister, took place in August.

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"It meets the expectations of the Moroccan community established in Israel, which has strong ties with its country of origin. It also aims to enable tourists, as well as businessmen and women, to travel to Morocco or Israel," RAM said in a statement. According to MAP, Morocco's official news agency, which had access to the press release issued by the airline, the aim of the two nations is to "respond to the needs of the Moroccan community in Israel, which has strong ties with its country of origin".

Morocco and Israel share more than economic ties. Within the Maghreb country itself there is the oldest and largest Jewish community in the entire MENA region, with 3,000 people living within the Kingdom. In turn, 700,000 Israelis are of direct descent from the Moroccan people, so the connections between the two territories are strong. "Given our fraternal relations, our cultural proximity, the complementarities and similarities between our two economies, as well as the transformation our economies have undergone in recent years, there are many opportunities to be seized," said Steve O'Hana, president of the Morocco-Israel Business Council.

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During the month of October, a seminar was held in which Steve O'Hana stressed the good relations between the Kingdom and Israel, in which he praised Morocco's political and economic situation. It was also recalled that in March an agreement was made between the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises (CGEM) and the Israeli Employers Business Organization (IEBO) for the rapprochement of Moroccan and Israeli companies, to carry out investment projects and future joint ventures, highlighting the great potential of both parties to explore and exploit resources.

The first relations between Morocco and Israel developed in 1993 and during the first years, there was a very good relationship between the two regions. In 2000, these relations broke down due to the Second Intifada executed by Palestine, which raised all its people against the powers of the Israeli government. From then until 2020, the relationship between the two countries broke down completely and Morocco did not recognise the sovereignty of the territory until 2020, when Israel in turn recognised the sovereignty of the Maghreb in Western Sahara.
 

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