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Moroccans debating legalization of cannabis for medicinal use
Morocco, a country where large volumes of cannabis are grown illicitly, is considering legalising production for therapeutic use of the drug, the government said Thursday. The government has "begun to study a legislative bill relating to the legal use of cannabis," it...
Morocco: Police seize 9.5 tons of cannabis near Rabat
Around 9.5 tonnes of cannabis resin was seized from a refrigerated lorry near Morocco's capital Rabat, the national security service said Monday. A police operation intercepted "a refrigerated lorry carrying 380 bales of around 9.5 tonnes of the drug, hidden among a...
Morocco: Protests in northern Morocco over social and economic despair
The Moroccan authorities dispatched police reinforcement to the northern city of Fnideq, where protests have erupted over social and economic despair among the population. Moroccan media reported rallies as having erupted because of the closure of the border with the...
Morocco: Uproar in Morocco as death toll in textile flooded workshop rises to 28
By Hicham Rafih - Authorities in Morocco faced mounting questions and calls for accountability Wednesday, two days after 28 people died when heavy rain flooded a basement factory in the port city of Tangiers. "The victims were trapped with no way to get out" and...
Western Sahara: Tensions running high as Polisario Front says three Moroccan soldiers killed in attack in Touizgui
In response to this article As a former journalist, I sympathize with others who struggle to find the correct wording to describe territories and movements. However, I must take issue gently with the item in today's weekly recap on the Polisario attack in southern...
Morocco: Death of workers in unlicensed textile workshop exposes Morocco’s illegal labor practices
At least 24 people died after heavy rain flooded an illegal underground textile workshop in a private house in Morocco's port of Tangiers, the state news agency reported Monday. Rescue workers recovered 24 bodies from the property and rescued 10 survivors, who were...
Morocco: Authorities find large quantities of cannabis buried in sand in the southwest
Nearly 9.2 tonnes of cannabis resin hidden in bales buried in sand were seized in southwestern Morocco, the national security service said Saturday. The DGSN security service said in a statement that the drugs were uncovered in the Guelmim region and an investigation...
Covid-19: Algeria and Morocco start vaccination campaign
Algeria kicks off Covid-19 vaccination campaign with Sputnik V, expects first shipment of AstraZeneca vaccine Algeria on Saturday launched its coronavirus vaccination campaign starting in the northern city of Blida, the epicentre of the country's Covid-19 outbreak in...
Morocco under pressure to release from prison historian and rights activist Maati Monjib
Amnesty International on Wednesday urged Morocco to release dissident historian and rights activist Maati Monjib, who has been in pre-trial detention for a month on money-laundering accusations. "The Moroccan authorities must immediately and unconditionally release...
Unable to govern, North African governments are using repression as their only tool in their toolbox
This week (ending 21 January 2021), Tunisia made the front pages of global media with Tunisians clashing with security forces over the past days to complain about their living conditions. The riots, which are still underway, have been taking place in several regions,...
Morocco’s abusive use of preventative detention
Morocco's detention of thousands of suspects awaiting judicial proceedings has sparked a heated debate in the North African country, with even prison authorities criticising its "excessive" use. Rights groups have warned of the use of preventative detention against...
Western Sahara: How Trump’s madness could undermine Morocco’s claim over the Western Sahara
By Arezki Daoud: Anger in the United States against disgraced American president Donald Trump has reached its peak. His opponents, in the millions, including an increasing number of fellow Republicans, can't wait to get rid of him and erase his legacy. Not only...
Turkey’s growing influence in the Maghreb, from drones to soap operas
By Hamza Mekouar: Turkey is boosting its influence across North Africa, analysts say, intervening militarily in war-torn Libya and using "soft power", trade and investment in Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. While Turkish-made drones have won battles in Libya, its soap...
Morocco: Torrential rain and dilapidated drainage systems kill one in Casablanca
Torrential rain in Morocco this week after a period of drought has caused at least one death in its economic capital Casablanca, as bad weather remains forecast for the coming days. Authorities said one person was killed and four injured after the roof of a structure...
Morocco arrests rights activist and historian Maati Monjib
Morocco on Tuesday arrested historian and human rights activist Maati Monjib after an investigation into alleged money laundering, a security source said. Monjib, 60, would be brought before the king's attorney general at the Rabat court of first instance, "which...
Algeria and Morocco continue to repress journalists and rights activists
Algerian regime wants to punish activist Amira Bouraoui Algerian prosecutors have requested a tougher two-year jail sentence for prominent anti-government activist Amira Bouraoui during her trial on appeal, a prisoners' rights group said Friday. Bouraoui, a...
Morocco picks Chinese Sinopharm and British AstraZeneca for upcoming Covid vaccination campaign
Morocco said Thursday it had ordered 65 million doses of novel coronavirus vaccine, as the North African kingdom prepared to launch a vaccination campaign targeting 25 million people. "Preparations have reached very advanced stages," Health Minister Khalid Ait Taleb...
Spain annoyed by Morocco’s PM El Othmani over his comments on Ceuta and Melilla
Spain has summoned the Moroccan ambassador to explain comments by its prime minister over the Spanish north African enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, which are claimed by Rabat. The spat comes at a sensitive time in relations between the two countries, in particular over...
Algeria’s mediocre diplomacy: Even the Tunisians are slowly turning their back to Algiers ($)
Between Tunis and Algiers, diplomatic relations are strained, resulting from the recent statements of two former top Tunisian state officials about the controversial handling of the Western Sahara issue by the Algerians. The ex-officials are the influential Moncef...
Divided Maghreb countries celebrate one common thing: the Couscous
Couscous, the Berber dish beloved across northern Africa's Maghreb region and beyond, Wednesday joined the UN list of the world's intangible cultural heritage. The countries that submitted the listing to UNESCO -- Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Mauritania -- may have...
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