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Israel, Morocco, US Sign Joint Declaration

US Senior Advisor Jared Kushner and his accompanying delegation visiting the tomb of the late kings Mohammed V and Hassan II in Rabat (MAP)
US Senior Advisor Jared Kushner and his accompanying delegation visiting the tomb of the late kings Mohammed V and Hassan II in Rabat (MAP)
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Israel, Morocco, US Sign Joint Declaration

US Senior Advisor Jared Kushner and his accompanying delegation visiting the tomb of the late kings Mohammed V and Hassan II in Rabat (MAP)
US Senior Advisor Jared Kushner and his accompanying delegation visiting the tomb of the late kings Mohammed V and Hassan II in Rabat (MAP)

King Mohammed VI received on Tuesday US Senior Advisor Jared Kushner and Israeli National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat, who is of Moroccan origins, at Rabat’s Royal Palace, according to a Royal Cabinet statement.

The US-Israel high-level delegation also included US Special Representative for International Negotiations Avrahm Berkowitz.

Kushner and the Israeli delegation arrived in the Kingdom onboard the first direct flight between Israel and Morocco since the two countries agreed to establish diplomatic relations under a US-brokered deal earlier this month.

Morocco’s King reiterated full satisfaction with the phonecall he held with US President Donald Trump on December 10. The date marks the US’ decision to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara.

During the call, King Mohammed VI announced Morocco’s decision to re-establish official diplomatic relations with Israel.

The measures include the promotion of a cooperative dynamic and innovative bilateral economy and plans to reopen liaison offices in Rabat and Tel Aviv.

During the meeting, King Mohammed VI congratulated Kushner for the “substantial work accomplished since his visit to Morocco in May 2018, which made it possible to achieve this historic turning point in favor of Morocco’s territorial integrity,” and for his efforts to ensure regional peace in the Middle East.

King Mohammed VI also spoke to Meir Ben-Shabbat on the special ties with the Moroccan Jewish community.

The Royal Cabinet statement also said that the meeting between the King, Ben-Shabbat, and Kushner served as an opportunity to reaffirm that the states will fully implement all decisions and measures announced during King Mohammed VI’s December 10 phone call with Trump.

The cabinet concluded the statement by reiterating Morocco’s position regarding the Palestinian cause. Morocco considers that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict can only come to an end through negotiations between Israel and Palestine that lead to a two-state solution to ensure peace and security.

At the end of the meeting, Israel, Morocco, and the US signed a joint declaration.

Head of Government Saad Eddine El Othmani signed the document with Jared Kushner and Meir Ben-Shabbat.

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Blinken again Says Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Deal is ‘Very Close’

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken speaks to the media on the sidelines of a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi in Tokyo, Japan, 07 January 2025. EPA/TAKASHI AOYAMA/POOL
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken speaks to the media on the sidelines of a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi in Tokyo, Japan, 07 January 2025. EPA/TAKASHI AOYAMA/POOL
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Blinken again Says Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Deal is ‘Very Close’

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken speaks to the media on the sidelines of a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi in Tokyo, Japan, 07 January 2025. EPA/TAKASHI AOYAMA/POOL
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken speaks to the media on the sidelines of a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi in Tokyo, Japan, 07 January 2025. EPA/TAKASHI AOYAMA/POOL

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is again saying that a ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas is “very close” and he hopes “we can get it over the line” before handing over US diplomacy to the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump.
“In area after area, we’re handing off, in some cases, things that we haven’t been able to complete but that create real opportunities to move things forward in a better way,” he said Wednesday on a stop in Paris for meetings.
Blinken said that even if the Biden administration's plans for a ceasefire and hostage deal don’t come to fruition before Trump’s inauguration, he thinks they’ll be put into practice afterward.
“I believe that when we get that deal – and we’ll get that deal – it will be on the basis of the plans that President Biden put before the world,” he said.
Israel’s military says troops have recovered the body of an additional hostage from Gaza. The body of an Israeli hostage held in Gaza, 53-year-old Yosef AlZayadni, was recovered in an underground tunnel in southern Gaza, the military said Wednesday. It said it was examining whether a second body was that of another hostage.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said earlier a second hostage's body had been recovered: AlZayadni’s son Hamzah.
The men were taken captive during Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7, 2023. The return of the body comes as Israel and Hamas are considering a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
Israel believes a third of the remaining 100 hostages are dead. However, AlZayadni was believed to still be alive before Wednesday’s announcement.
AlZayadni, who had 19 children, had worked at a dairy in southern Israel’s Kibbutz Holit for 17 years, said the Hostages Family Forum, a group representing the families of captives. AlZayadni was kidnapped with three of his children. His teenage kids, Bilal and Aisha, were released in a weeklong ceasefire deal in November.
The family are members of the Bedouin community, part of Israel’s Palestinian minority who have Israeli citizenship.