Morocco's king reiterates position on Palestine after criticism of Israel ties

The king responded to a statement by the Islamist PJD party which accused the kingdom of 'defending the Zionist entity'

Morocco's King Mohammed VI, in Paris in December 2017.  Reuters
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Morocco's King Mohammed VI said he supported the Palestinian cause on Tuesday, after criticism over the country's ties with Israel.

The row comes at a time of heightened violence in the West Bank.

“Morocco's position regarding the Palestinian question is irreversible”, he said, adding that the Palestinian cause is one of the country's “priorities”.

“His Majesty the King … places this issue on a par with the question of the kingdom's territorial integrity. For Morocco, this is a constant, principled position, which should not be open to political posturing and narrow electoral campaigns”, the king's statement said.

Last week, the Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) accused Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita of “defending the Zionist entity … at a time when the Israeli occupation continues its criminal aggression against our Palestinian brothers.”

The king's statement, released on Monday, said the country's international ties “cannot be the subject of blackmail”.

“The instrumentalisation of the kingdom's foreign policy in a domestic partisan agenda thus constitutes a dangerous, unacceptable precedent”, the statement added.

Rabat resumed ties with Israel in 2020 after cutting diplomatic relations in 2000 following the second Palestinian Intifada.

“The resumption of relations between Morocco and Israel took place in circumstances and in a context which everyone knows”, it said, noting that the king held a telephone conversation with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas beforehand.

Updated: March 14, 2023, 3:54 PM
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