Morocco has friendly relations with both the US and Israel, but solidarity with the Palestinian cause remains intrinsic within the kingdom [Getty/file photo]
US President Donald Trump has once again flouted the possibility of forcibly relocating Palestinians from the Gaza Strip – this time to Morocco, the unrecognised territory of Somaliland and the self-declared autonomous territory of Puntland, both located in the Horn of Africa, according to Israeli media.
On Tuesday, the Israeli channel N12 reported that the Trump administration is considering Morocco as a location for ethnically cleansed Gazans, citing its dependence on US recognition of the North African kingdom’s sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara. The report also claimed that both Somaliland and Puntland are seeking international recognition, potentially from Washington
The territories of Somaliland and Puntland are not recognised globally as independent countries.
Puntland has never outright sought independence, but in March last year, the territory said it will seek to operate as a separate entity from Somalia and withdrew itself from the country’s federal system until constitutional amendments passed by the central government are approved in a nationwide referendum, Reuters reported.
Somaliland, however, declared itself independent from Somalia in 1991 and has been self-governed since, but no country has officially recognised the territory as an independent entity.
Following Trump’s re-election in January this year, residents of the territory have expressed hope that the Republican will officially acknowledge the territory’s independence.
The United States Ambassador to Somalia, Richard H. Riley, said Somaliland was “one of the best examples of democracy in action in Africa”, while attending the inauguration of its President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi in December.
Gavin Williamson, the former UK defence secretary who lobbied Trump, also said in December that the US president is poised to recognise Somaliland as an official country, according to The Independent.Â
Morocco has friendly relations with the US, and has normalised relations with Israel in 2020 via the controversial Abraham Accords, brokered by Trump during his first term as president.
Back in 2020, Trump recognised Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara in exchange for the country establishing diplomatic relations with Israel.
A former Spanish colony and the source of diplomatic rifts between Morocco and Algeria, Western Sahara has been a national cause for the North African kingdom over the decades.
The building of a new American consulate was announced in Dakhla, one of the main cities located in the territory, though it has yet to be completed.
Despite relations with Israel and the US, which has staunchly supported its ally during its war on the Gaza Strip, pro-Palestinian sentiments have persisted in the kingdom, with almost-daily and weekly protests held in solidarity with those suffering in Gaza.
Pro-Palestinian activist groups have routinely condemned Israel’s atrocities in the Gaza Strip, and have called for Morocco to rescind its diplomatic ties with the country.
The Moroccan ministry of foreign affairs, on the other hand, has criticised Israel’s aggression in the Gaza Strip on a handful of occasions, albeit not frequently, likely taking into account its newly-established relations with Israel.
Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita had previously stressed that Morocco remains “committed” to the Palestinian cause, despite its diplomatic ties with Tel Aviv.
Speaking to The New Arab, international relations professor Said Siddiki, from the Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University in Fes, said that Morocco “cannot accept any plan to relocate or resettle Palestinians outside of Palestine, whether in Morocco or in another country, as such plan would not only constitute ethnic cleansing but also the liquidation of the Palestinian cause”.
“Although the country established new relations with Israel before 7 October, 2023, it was careful not to do so at the expense of Palestinian rights,” he told TNA.
Somaliland and Puntland authorities have not made any comments regarding Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip. Reports have also emerged over the years from Israeli media that Tel Aviv has actively sought strategic partnerships with Somaliland and the wider Horn of Africa, but no links have been established yet.
Trump’s alleged plan comes as he shockingly announced on Monday a “proposal” to expel Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and a subsequent US “take-over” of the Palestinian enclave.
Trump said he would reconstruct the war-battered enclave and turn into the “Riviera of the Middle East”.
Trump’s plan triggered intense backlash from Palestinians, who vowed to remain in the enclave, condemning the US President’s words as “arrogant, delusional and crazy”.
Trump had initially said he wanted to expel Palestinians into Jordan and Egypt – a notion vehemently rejected by the two countries.
He also claimed that he had spoken to “other leaders in the Middle East and they like the idea of ​​moving the Palestinians from Gaza,” despite condemnation from the region’s heads of states.
Several global leaders, including from the UK, Brazil, China and Saudi Arabia and Germany, also criticised Trump’s proposal.
The New Arab has contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of both Morocco and Somaliland, but did not receive a reply in time of publication.
