31 Mar 2023; MEMO: The head of the Israeli Liaison Office in Morocco, David Govrin, will reportedly return to Rabat in the coming days to resume his duties, after being recalled last year over allegations of sexual harassment, Israeli media reported.
Observers believe Govrin will be reinstated to his post due to the difficulty of continuing the investigation into the claims and the structural changes to the Israeli Foreign Ministry since the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came into office.
Moroccan journalist and expert on relations between Morocco and Israel, Chama Darchoul, said Govrin's return has become a foregone conclusion, "not because there were no charges against him, as some newspapers had welcomed," but rather for political reasons.
"Discussing recognising Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara in return for restoring life to the diplomatic process [between Israel and Morocco] and returning David to his post [despite his lacking expertise on the file] is due to an internal dispute [in Israel] between sending a politician from the extreme right or someone who ascended the foreign ministry's ladder," she explained.
The Moroccan government did not comment on the envoy's return.
