Moroccans protest over casting of pro-war Israeli actor in TV series
The casting of an Israeli actor, who reportedly supports Israel's war on Gaza, in a Moroccan television series has sparked a backlash in the North African kingdom.
Eva Kadosh, an Israeli citizen of Moroccan origin, was cast in the show Nass El Mellah, which is currently airing on public TV channel 2M.
According to Moroccan media, Kadosh has shared several posts on social media in support of Israeli actions in Gaza since the war began in October 2023. She has since reportedly deleted all such posts.
On Tuesday, the Moroccan Front in Support of Palestine and Against Normalisation held a sit-in protest over the casting choice outside 2M's offices in Rabat.
Campaigners called for a boycott of the show in solidarity with Palestinian and Lebanese people under Israeli bombardment. They also called for an end to the war.
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Nass El Mellah is a 15-part series directed by Jamila Elbarji Benaissa. It has been broadcast each Thursday since 26 September.
The show is set in the mellah - a place of residence assigned historically to Jewish communities in Morocco - in the city centre of Essaouira.
It focuses on Muslim and Jewish families, and Kadosh's character is based on a real-life Moroccan Jewish woman who ran a restaurant in the city.
Normalisation with Israel
Rabat resumed open diplomatic ties with Israel in 2020, in a deal brokered by the Trump administration.
The two countries are yet to complete the process of setting up full embassies in each other's countries, but they have moved closer together, including by signing a defence cooperation pact.
'Even before Eva Kadosh appeared in the series, we knew her as a supporter of the Zionist army'
– Aziz Hennaoui, campaigner
Aziz Hennaoui, the head of a Moroccan group which opposes normalisation, told local news outlet Yabiladi that the casting of Kadosh was the latest development in efforts towards normalisation between Israel and Morocco in recent years.
"Even before Eva Kadosh appeared in the series, we knew her as a supporter of the Zionist army and a right-wing woman who backs the Israeli chief of staff in the Zionist war," he said, referring to photos of the actor with Aviv Kochavi, chief of staff of the Israeli military.
Hennaoui argued that normalisation efforts contradicted Morocco's official stance, "which aligns with the presidency of the Al-Quds Committee and the solidarity of the Moroccan people with Palestine".
The Al-Quds Committee, chaired by Morocco's King Mohammed VI and counting 16 member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation as signatories, supports the Palestinian people in relation to issues affecting Jerusalem and its holy sites.
Middle East Eye has approached Eva Kadosh for comment.
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