New Israeli medical team to Mauritania

A medical source in Nouakchott said on Wednesday that a new Israeli medical team has been in the city since August 24 in the context of cooperation between Israel and Mauritania.

The Israeli medical team, the third to visit Mauritania since January 1997, includes two oculists, and it is working in the medical center in Nouakchott. A similar Israeli medical team was exposed in July to strong criticism from the opposition parties, which are against normalization with Israel.

In March 1999 the presence of the first Israeli specialist in cancer diseases caused an incident when a nurse attacked one of its members.

Mauritania and Israel established relations following a meeting between their two foreign ministers in Madrid in November 1995. In 1996 Israel opened an economic interests branch in Noaukchott, and Mauritania opened a similar office in Tel Aviv.