Following are Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's remarks, this evening (Thursday, 10 December 2020), on US President Donald Trump's statement on the establishment of relations between Israel and Morocco, at the Western Wall, at the ceremony to light the first Chanukah candle, with the participation of US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman:

 

"I've always believed that this historic day would come, I've always worked for it. I want to first thank Pres​ident Trump for his extraordinary efforts to expand peace, to bring peace to Israel and the peoples of the Middle East. President Trump, the people of Israel and the State of Israel will be forever indebted to you for your magnificent efforts on our behalf. I want to thank, too, the King of Morocco, King Mohammed VI, for taking this historic decision to bring a historic peace between us. 

“The people of Morocco and the Jewish people have had a warm relationship in the modern period. Everybody knows the tremendous friendship shown by the kings of Morocco and the people of Morocco to the Jewish community there. And hundreds of thousands of these Moroccan Jews came to Israel, and they form a human bridge between our two countries and our two peoples, of sympathy respect, of fondness and love. I think that this is the foundation on which we can now build this peace. 

“We'll resume liaison offices quickly between Israel and Morocco and work as rapidly as possible to establish full diplomatic relations. We'll also institute direct flights between Morocco and Israel and Israel and morocco, giving this bridge of peace an even more solid foundation. This will be a very warm peace. Peace has never – the light of peace on this Hanukkah day has never – shone brighter than today in the Middle East."