Israel participates in military exercise in Morocco

Israeli military observers participated in a military exercise in Morocco, according to the country’s Defense Ministry on Sunday.

A ministry statement said the participation in the African Lion 2022 exercise was “an additional step in strengthening security relations between the countries."

Israeli Ambassador in Rabat David Govrin tweeted that security ties “were added to a big list of bilateral initiatives in the fields of economy, culture, education, sport and others."

There was no comment from the Moroccan authorities on the report.

This was the first time for Israel to participate in an international military drill in the North African country.

US forces also took part in the training, the Israeli statement said.

The military exercise, held on June 20-30, saw the participation of forces from ten countries, according to the Moroccan military.

Last year, a Moroccan counter-terrorism unit participated in a multinational drill in Israel.

Morocco was the fourth Arab country to agree to normalize ties with Israel in 2020 after the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Sudan.