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In an attempt to establish ties with Arab countries in both North Africa and the Middle East, the Israeli Foreign Ministry conducted a «controversial» poll, asking people from the region if they were interested in their countries having relations with the Hebrew state.
The results of the study, revealed Friday by the Jerusalem Post, were quite «unpredictable». According to Israeli pollsters, 75% of Arab respondents think that «ties with Israel can be beneficial to their countries.
The poll, which included 1000 people from each of these Middle Eastern countries, revealed that 41% of Moroccans said that «they are in favor of ties with Israel». The survey stated that 43% of Iraqis, 42% of Emiratis, 32% of Tunisians, 21% of Algerian and 23% of Saudis «are in favor of such ties».
The «debatable» results of the Israeli poll covered other areas. «The survey also examined how much respondents agreed that the Palestinian Authority is a roadblock to regional peace», stated the Jerusalem Post.
According to the same source, 52% of Middle Eastern respondents, including Moroccans, have no opinion regarding the above-mentioned question. The same thing applies to respondents from Western Europe and North America, 52% and 51% respectively.
Israel is dying to establish ties with Arab countries
As its results remain questionable, the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s poll comes in a time when the Hebrew entity is dying to establish ties with North African and Middle Eastern states. The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is running for election next month, visited the Sultanate of Oman earlier this month and met Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said, in an unprecedented normalization move.
Oman is not the only country in the region to have growing political and diplomatic rapprochement with Israel. Media reports suggested, in the last couple of years, that Riyadh and Tel Aviv held a series of secret meetings.
A few days ago, the Emirati Minister of State for the Federal National Council and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash urged Arab states to normalize relations with Israel, claiming that it would help reach a solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict.
For the record, Morocco has been on Israel’s radar in the recent couple of months. Circulated rumors suggested that Netanyahu held a secret meeting with Moroccan Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Bourita. Quoting a source close to the Israeli Prime Minister, Israeli media reported that the two officials discussed ways of «normalizing ties and arranging a visit» in New York.
Reports on Bourita and Netanyahu’s «secret meeting» came as the Israeli Broadcasting Authority (IBA) announced that Netanyahu’s office «hopes to arrange several meetings on the sidelines of the anti-Iran meeting in Warsaw, including interviews with Moroccan FM Nasser Bourita and the latter’s Bahraini counterpart, Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa». However, Nasser Bourita ended up not attending the meeting held, February, in Warsaw (Poland).
Earlier in February, reports emerged suggesting that Benjamin Netanyahu is visiting Morocco in March. The Government’s Spokesperson Mustapha El Khalfi commented on these reports, stating that they are just «rumors».
