Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid left on Wednesday for Morocco. The two-day trip is the highest-level visit by an Israeli official to Morocco since the two countries normalized relations last year after nearly two decades. The countries have not, however, established full diplomatic ties.
Lapid is scheduled to meet with Morocco’s foreign minister, Nasser Bourita. He will open up an Israel liaison office in the capital, Rabat He also is scheduled to meet in Casablanca with members of the local Jewish community and pray in its Beth-El synagogue. He is accompanied on the visit by Labor, Social Affairs and Social Services Minister Meir Cohen, who was born in Morocco, and other government officials.
The visit comes less than a month after direct flights resumed between Israel and Morocco.
“Taking off for a historic visit to Morocco!” Lapid tweeted, posting a photograph of the El Al airline departures screen.
About a million Jews of Moroccan origin live in Israel. Tens of thousands of them are expected to travel to Morocco in the wake of the reestablished ties.