Why the US Needs to Help Morocco
by Khaled Abu Toameh • December 22, 2020 at 5:00 am
Morocco's General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DGST) announced last month that the Moroccan authorities have dismantled 207 terrorist cells since 2002.
As for Morocco... it is the Islamists, and not Israel, who have "corrupted the minds of Moroccans, sowed the seeds of discord among them, brought Moroccan education to the brink of bankruptcy and legitimized ignorance." — Ahmed Assid, professor of philosophy and activist, kifache.com, December 15, 2020.
"The rhetoric of hostility and the threat of throwing the Jews into the sea won Israel widespread international sympathy. The Palestinians have missed many opportunities, and they have been chasing the illusions given to them by the [Arab] regimes..." — Sa'id Al-Kahal, a secular Moroccan author, hespress.com, January 23, 2020.
If the new US administration wants peace in the region to hold, it needs to maintain pressure on the mullahs in Tehran and not return to the policy of appeasement. Failure to do so would facilitate the mission of the Islamists to destabilize the Middle East, and especially the courageous countries that are finally opting for peace.
Will Morocco face Islamist terror attacks after its decision to normalize its relations with Israel? Iran and its Islamists proxies in Morocco, Lebanon and the Gaza Strip have condemned the Israel-Morocco normalization deal as a "betrayal of Islam," a move that could lead to a wave of terror attacks by various Islamist groups, particularly Islamic State (ISIS).
Now that Morocco has decided to make peace with Israel, ISIS and other terrorist groups are likely to increase their plans to thwart the agreement by launching terror attacks in the country.
In the eyes of the Islamists, a "betrayal of Islam" is seen as apostasy, a crime and sin punishable by execution. The message Iran and its allies are sending to the terrorists: You have a green light to launch terror attacks against the leaders of Morocco because, by making peace with Israel, they have also renounced their religion, Islam, and become infidels.
