The Israel Defense Forces announced on Monday the appointment of Col. Sharon Itach as Israel’s first-ever military attaché to Morocco, which normalized relations with Jerusalem as part of the Trump administration-brokered Abraham Accords.
Itach, who is of Moroccan descent, currently heads the IDF Home Front Command’s Haifa district, and previously led the 489th “Kedem” search and rescue battalion.
The appointment, made by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, must still be approved by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
Last month, Gallant hailed burgeoning military ties with Rabat in a call with his Moroccan counterpart Abdellatif Loudiyi.
“We discussed the defense ties critical to regional security and stability, and emphasized the need to further deepen cooperation,” said Gallant, according to a statement from his office.
Earlier in June, Knesset speaker Amir Ohana expressed support for Moroccan sovereignty over the Western Sahara, during the first-ever official visit by a leader of Israel’s parliament to the legislature of a Muslim country.
The United States recognized Morocco’s ownership of the territory in 2020 in return for the country joining the Abraham Accords, which also normalized Israel’s relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan.
Also in June, Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi held a series of meetings in Rabat, including with Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita and the heads of the country’s security services.
An estimated one million Israelis are either from Morocco or are of Moroccan descent. Approximately 3,000 Jews currently live in the North African country.
More than 200,000 Israelis visited Morocco in 2022, as coronavirus travel restrictions came to an end.
