Israel has decided to “recognize Morocco’s sovereignty” over the disputed Western Sahara region, the royal office in Rabat announced Monday, citing a letter from the Israeli prime minister.
According to the letter, Benjamin Netanyahu informed Morocco’s King Mohammed VI of “the State of Israel’s decision to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty” over the mineral-rich desert region, the royal office said in a statement.Netanyahu said in the letter that Israel is examining the “opening of a consulate in the town of Dakhla”, located in the Moroccan part of Western Sahara, a move long demanded by Rabat.

The Algeria-backed Polisario Front wants an independent state in the Western Sahara, a vast stretch of desert which Morocco considers to be an integral part of its own territory.

Morocco and Israel normalized relations in December 2020 as part of a series of similar US-backed deals with Arab states known as the Abraham Accords.

In return for normalization with Israel, Rabat received from Washington recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.

Khalil Wakim, with AFP

 

 

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