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Israel's Army Commander to Visit Morocco Next Week

In this file photo taken on June 21, 2021, Israeli army Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi salutes during a US official ceremony in his honor at the Pentagon in Washington, DC. (AFP)
In this file photo taken on June 21, 2021, Israeli army Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi salutes during a US official ceremony in his honor at the Pentagon in Washington, DC. (AFP)
    Ramallah, Rabat - Asharq Al-Awsat
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Israel's Army Commander to Visit Morocco Next Week

In this file photo taken on June 21, 2021, Israeli army Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi salutes during a US official ceremony in his honor at the Pentagon in Washington, DC. (AFP)
In this file photo taken on June 21, 2021, Israeli army Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi salutes during a US official ceremony in his honor at the Pentagon in Washington, DC. (AFP)

Israeli army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kohavi will visit Morocco next week, in the first trip by an Israeli military commander to the north African nation, said Israeli media.

On Friday, the army said Kohavi would make a three-day visit to an Arab nation, but it didn’t specify the destination for "security reasons".

The announcement was made following a security meeting with US President Joe Biden who visited to Israel’s advanced missile-defense systems at its main international airport on Friday. Israel showed off a multilayered system and the new "Light Shield."

An Israeli source said Kohavi will seek to develop military cooperation with Morocco.

Rabat has played a key role in the Israeli decision to give Palestinians around-the-clock access to the Allenby Bridge border crossing with Jordan.

Transportation Minister Merav Michaeli had been working with Moroccan officials, alongside US and Palestinian teams, for the past several months to find a solution to keep the crossing open around the clock.

Michaeli publicly thanked Biden, as well as King Mohammad VI and Morocco "for their continued commitment and efforts to promote peace and prosperity in the Middle East."

The Hebrew-language Channel 7 said this step was pushed further in the wake of Biden's visit, and it is expected to be implemented once the logistical conditions are met, including the recruitment of the required workforce.

It is part of a series of steps promoted by Michaeli to bolster regional ties and cooperation, shifting Israel into a major power in transporting passengers, workers and goods, as well as boosting its economy.

The two countries agreed in December 2020 to resume diplomatic ties and relaunch direct flights - part of a deal brokered by the administration of former US President Donald Trump that also included Washington’s recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara.

In the same year, Israel normalized ties with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain as part of the Abraham Accords.

Earlier this year, Kohavi traveled to Bahrain on a first official trip. Also during that visit, Kohavi reportedly met with his Qatari counterpart.

Kohavi’s term as chief of staff will end in January 2023.

Five Israeli ministers have visited Morocco recently, namely Defense Minister Benny Gantz, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, Minister of Science and Technology Orit Farkash-Hacohen, Minister of Economy and Industry Orna Barbivay, and Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked.

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Arab World

Syria, Lebanon Pledge Firm Ties after Years of Tensions

Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati meet with Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, Syria, January 11, 2025. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati meet with Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, Syria, January 11, 2025. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
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Syria, Lebanon Pledge Firm Ties after Years of Tensions

Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati meet with Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, Syria, January 11, 2025. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati meet with Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, Syria, January 11, 2025. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)

Syria's new ruler and Lebanon's prime minister pledged on Saturday to build lasting ties during the first visit by a Lebanese head of government to Damascus since the start of the civil war in 2011.  

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati's trip came after Islamist-led rebels seized Damascus last month, bringing an end to the rule of Bashar al-Assad.  

Previous Lebanese governments refrained from visits to Syria amid tensions at home over the Hezbollah group’s support for Assad during the conflict.

Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa said he hoped to turn over a new leaf in relations, days after crisis-hit Lebanon finally elected a president this week following two years of deadlock.

"There will be long-term strategic relations between us and Lebanon. We and Lebanon have great shared interests," said Sharaa.  

It was time to "give the Syrian and Lebanese people a chance to build a positive relationship", he said, adding that he hoped Joseph Aoun's presidency would usher in an era of stability in Lebanon.  

Sharaa said the new Syria would "stay at equal distance from all" in Lebanon, and "try to solve problems through negotiations and dialogue".  

Mikati said new ties should be based on "mutual respect, equality and national sovereignty".  

- Syrian refugees -  

Syria was the dominant power in Lebanon for three decades under the Assad family, with President Hafez al-Assad intervening in its 1975-1990 civil war and his son Bashar only withdrawing Syria's troops in 2005 following mass protests triggered by the assassination of Lebanese ex-prime minister Rafic Hariri, which was widely blamed on Damascus.

After mending ties with Damascus, his son Saad Hariri was the last Lebanese premier to visit the Syrian capital in 2010 before the civil war.  

Taking office on Thursday, Aoun swore he would seize the "historic opportunity to start serious... dialogue with the Syrian state".  

With Hezbollah weakened after two months of full-scale war with Israel late last year and Assad now gone, Syrian and Lebanese leaders seem eager to work to solve long-pending issues.  

Among them is the presence of some two million Syrian refugees that Lebanon says have sought shelter on its territory since the Syrian war started.  

Their return to Syria had become "an urgent matter in the interest of both countries", Mikati said.  

Lebanese authorities have for years complained that hosting so many Syrians has become a burden for the tiny Mediterranean country which has been wracked by the worst economic crisis in its history since 2019.  

Mikati also said it was a priority "to draw up the land and sea borders between Lebanon and Syria", calling for a joint committee to be set up to discuss the matter.  

Under Assad, Syria repeatedly refused to delimit its borders with its neighbor.  

Lebanon has been hoping to draw the maritime border so that it can begin offshore gas extraction after reaching a similar agreement with Israel in 2022.  

Mikati was accompanied on his visit by Lebanon's foreign minister Abdullah Bou Habib, the head of Lebanon's general security agency, which is responsible for border management, and the head of Lebanon's military intelligence.

- 'Smuggling' -  

The Lebanese premier said both sides had stressed the need for "complete control of (land) borders, especially over illicit border points, to stem smuggling".

Syria shares a 330-kilometer (205-mile) border with Syria with no official demarcation at several points, making it porous and prone to smuggling.  

Syria imposed new restrictions on the entry of Lebanese citizens last week, following what the Lebanese army said was a border skirmish with unnamed armed Syrians.  

Lebanese nationals had previously been allowed into Syria without a visa, using just their passport or ID card.  

A string of foreign dignitaries have headed to Damascus in recent weeks to meet the new leaders, with a delegation from Oman also in town earlier on Saturday.  

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani visited Damascus on Friday, while France's Jean-Noel Barrot and his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock did last week.  

Shaibani has visited Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Jordan since the start of the month, and said Friday he would head to Europe soon.  

Syria's war has killed more than half a million people and ravaged the country's economy since starting in 2011 with the brutal crackdown of anti-Assad protests.