Shield and Alert: Maghreb Bound

Youth-led protests have spread across Moroccan cities, demanding better healthcare, education, and job opportunities. Organized online, the demonstrations have faced a heavy police presence and led to nearly 200 arrests, highlighting growing frustration over government spending on sports facilities instead of social services.

An Algerian court sentenced former labor minister Hassen Tidjani Haddam to seven years in prison for embezzling nearly $45 million from the National Social Security Fund, as part of a wider anti-corruption campaign.

Spanish prosecutors seek major prison sentences and fines for politicians and business leaders accused of paying bribes to win Algerian public contracts in a decade-long corruption scandal.