Despite Gaza genocide, Morocco opens Israeli drone factory as normalisation debate intensifies

BlueBird Aero Systems, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries, announced in early November the opening of a production facility in Morocco for SpyX suicide drones. The plant in Benslimane, near Casablanca, is the first of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa outside Israel.

A Moroccan technical team has already received training at BlueBird's facilities in Israel as part of a technology transfer programme. The company said the training covered manufacturing stages in preparation for local production, with Moroccan engineers learning to assemble and maintain the aircraft.

The SpyX is a lightweight loitering munition with a range of 50 kilometres, a flight time of approximately two hours, and an attack speed exceeding 250 kilometres per hour. It can be equipped with various warheads and uses advanced sensors to identify targets before striking. The Moroccan army tested the system in March 2024.

The announcement has prompted debate in Morocco about the expanding military relationship with Israel. For supporters, the project represents a step towards defence self-sufficiency and reduced dependence on arms imports. For critics, it marks a deepening of normalisation with Israel at a time when public opposition to ties with Tel Aviv remains strong, particularly amid the ongoing war in Gaza, which has claimed to date nearly 70,000 Palestinians.

Abdelrahman Mekaoui, a security expert and professor of international relations at the University of Dijon, said the Benslimane facility represents “a significant development” in Morocco's defence industry.

"This drone is among the smart combat weapons capable of destroying moving targets, especially armoured vehicles and enemy concentrations, thanks to its long operational range and effectiveness proven in the Middle East, Afghanistan, and other regions," Mekaoui told The New Arab.

Defence transformation

The SpyX belongs to the fifth generation of loitering munitions, he said, using artificial intelligence algorithms and advanced radar for precise target tracking. "This makes it a high-performance tactical weapon at a lower cost compared to other types of attack drones."

Morocco signed the Abraham Accords in 2020 during US President Donald Trump's first term, establishing economic, diplomatic, and military ties with Israel. Since then, the kingdom has become a major customer for Israel's defence industry, with the expansion of cooperation coming at the expense of its activities with France.

The kingdom has acquired Barak 8 air defence systems from IAI and Rafael's Spyder. In July last year, Morocco chose to purchase IAI Ofek 13 satellites rather than from previous French suppliers Airbus and Thales. In February 2025, Morocco reportedly procured 36 Atmos howitzer units from Elbit Systems, a system capable of firing NATO-standard 155 mm shells at ranges exceeding 40 kilometres.

In August, Morocco completed a trial of Elbit and IAI-made Extra guided rockets in the southeast of the country. The test took place about two years after Morocco signed a $150 million deal for Elbit's PULS rocket systems, with delivery expected by 2026.

The project would strengthen Morocco's air defence system and support national security amid what Mekaoui described as terrorist threats and regional risks.

"Morocco makes its defence decisions according to studied criteria that take into account the needs of the army and geostrategic requirements," he said. "Local manufacturing may also open the door to re-export and create added value within the national defence industry."

On concerns about the ethics of partnering with Israel, Mekaoui said Morocco "distinguishes between its security and military choices and its firm positions towards decisive Arab causes."

Rachid Lazraq, a professor of political science at Ibn Tofail University in Kenitra, described the facility as a structural transformation in Morocco's approach to national security, a shift from purchasing technology to owning and producing it.

"This transformation aims to integrate Morocco into defence value chains by building a local system that includes engineering, software, precision electronics, and advanced maintenance," Lazraq told TNA. This would allow "the accumulation of internal strategic knowledge that reduces dependence on external sources."

The technology transfer also carries economic benefits, he said, reducing pressure on foreign currency and converting defence spending into productive investment that creates high-skilled jobs and raises human capital levels.

Lazraq argued that linking this industrial development to Morocco's position on Gaza or Jerusalem "represents a confusion between symbolic policies that reflect the kingdom's identity and diplomatic constants, and strategic decisions based on sovereignty and national security calculations."

Morocco's support for the Palestinian cause is historically established, he said, but this "does not contradict its pursuit of diversifying its defence partnerships and developing its own capabilities in a way that serves its national security."

Normalisation rejected

Critics see the project differently. For anti-normalisation groups in Morocco, no strategic rationale can justify military cooperation with Israel.

Aziz Hanaoui, secretary-general of the Moroccan Observatory Against Normalisation, a group bringing together human rights activists, trade unionists, and political figures opposed to ties with Israel, said the project crosses a red line.

"Any military or security cooperation with Israel is the most repugnant form of normalisation at the national level," Hanaoui told TNA. "This position is not limited to solidarity with the Palestinian people, but also extends to protecting Moroccan security and preventing any Zionist penetration in military and security fields."

Hanaoui said his organisation had opposed the military agreement Morocco signed with Israel three years ago through marches and petitions.

"Our position today has become more intense and angry given the ongoing Zionist massacres against Palestinians," he added.

He called on the relevant authorities to issue a clear statement on the nature of military cooperation.

"Official silence on this matter is unacceptable," he told TNA. "Any acceptance by the state of this cooperation is considered implicit participation in what the Zionist entity is committing against the Palestinian people and the Arab nation."

Mohamed Ghafri, national coordinator of the Moroccan Front for Supporting Palestine and Against Normalisation, said the cooperation has moved beyond symbolic normalisation into what he called "a military alliance that harms Morocco's image, because it is linked to an entity internationally condemned for committing crimes against humanity."

Morocco faces challenges in its regional environment to the north and south, Ghafri acknowledged. But he said the kingdom "should have moved towards self-armament and developing its national capabilities, rather than relying on Israeli military industries that have not proven their effectiveness in the Middle East or in recent conflicts, including the war on Gaza."

He rejected the argument that the partnership serves Morocco's geostrategic security, calling it a narrative that "only covers the increasing connection to Israeli industries."

"Strengthening defence capabilities is a legitimate necessity, especially with the neighbour arming itself with advanced weapons," Ghafri said. "But this must be done by diversifying sources of weapons and betting on Moroccan scientific research, not by surrendering to the idea of Israeli superiority."

He said any alliance with Israel makes Morocco "a party to the crimes of this entity," adding that "the relationship with a power that surpasses you will only bring you humiliation and tarnishing of reputation."

Political pushback

Oussama Oufrid, a member of the political bureau of the Unified Socialist Party, a Moroccan leftist party, said Morocco's strategic interests "cannot be built at the expense of just human causes. Any defence orientation must be consistent with human values and the supreme national interest."

"Morocco possesses the capabilities, intelligent capacities, and sufficient human competencies to develop its defence capabilities and benefit from partnerships with countries that respect humans and serve humanity," Oufrid told TNA. This would allow developing the self-defence industry "without siding with racist entities like Israel, which represents a model contrary to human values."

The Moroccan public's rejection of normalisation "is not a passing feeling," he said, "but has been clearly and intensively expressed in massive popular marches, reflecting awareness of the importance of preserving the independence of national decision-making and not subjecting it to external pressures."

Oufrid said separating the presence of Israeli companies in Morocco from normalisation and linking it to strategic choices "is a misleading discourse that hides behind it the justification of military relations that may affect the national identity and moral values of the homeland."

"International experiences confirm that building real deterrent power starts from self-dependence, not from importing weapons from a party whose power has proven limited on the battlefield," Ghafri said. "Morocco possesses competencies capable of innovation if given the means, and the future must be built on independent national industry, not on pleasing external parties."

This article is published in collaboration with Egab.