The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released an official statement on Friday on the social network “X” (formerly Twitter), in response to a controversial publicized map of Morocco on a news program. The statement reiterated Israel’s recognition of Morocco’s sovereignty over the Sahara.
The incident occurred during Netanyahu’s appearance on a French channel on Thursday. He was discussing the ongoing war in Gaza and the decisions of the International Court of Justice. During the course of his remarks, he displayed a map of the Arab world featuring the Sahara separated from the Kingdom.
A few hours after the show aired, the Minister’s office issued an apology via the “X” platform stating that it was a mistake. “Unfortunately, an error occurred in the map presented during the Prime Minister’s interview on TF1,” the post read.
“The Israeli government, led by Prime Minister Netanyahu, has recognized the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Morocco over the entirety of its territories,” a subsequent statement stated. “All official maps, including the one erroneously depicted in the interview, have been corrected accordingly.”
On Thursday, the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s spokesman to the Arab media, Hassan Kaabia, stated, “Due to an unintentional error, the map showing Morocco without its Sahara has been the subject of considerable media fuss.”
The press imbroglio to which the spokesman was referring was ignited by net surfers supporting the Polisario separatists who want to claim the Moroccan Sahara as their own.
He wrote, “I would like to clarify to His Majesty King Mohammed VI, his dear people, and his honorable government: Morocco is in its Sahara until God inherits the earth and everything on it.”
“We apologize for this technical error,” he concluded.