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The Aghbalou N’Kerdous area, part of the Tinjdad district in Errachidia province, witnessed tensions on Thursday morning between two tribes after one of them attempted to bury the body of a woman in a cemetery located on communal tribal land that is the subject of a long-running dispute between the two sides.
Videos circulating on social media showed a funeral procession crossing open land toward the cemetery while dozens of people attempted to block its passage. The mourners were ultimately forced to stop and lower the deceased woman’s body to the ground, as several people intervened to separate the two groups and prevent the situation from escalating.
The woman’s family subsequently returned the body to their home, in an incident that sparked widespread debate and outrage on social media. Local media outlets, meanwhile, reported two conflicting versions of the events.
While members of the first tribe condemned what they described as a violation of the sanctity of the dead and a breach of social and religious values, criticizing what they saw as a lack of wisdom and compassion in handling the situation, the second tribe insisted that the dispute was not about refusing to bury the deceased. Instead, it argued that the issue stemmed from an attempt to establish a new cemetery on communal land belonging to the Taghanbout tribe without following the legal procedures in force.
Intervention ends the dispute
The second tribe maintained that the move constituted an encroachment on its collective lands and an attempt to impose a fait accompli. According to its representatives, the dispute extends beyond the immediate need for a cemetery and is tied to broader questions of land use and control.
The tribe further noted that the deceased woman’s community already has its own cemetery, as well as land that could be used to establish a new burial ground. It said it had acted responsibly throughout the incident, explaining that a grave had been prepared in its own cemetery and that the family had been offered the option of burying the woman there, while leaving the underlying land dispute to be resolved by the competent authorities.
In response, residents of Aghbalou N’Kerdous staged a protest march to the headquarters of the Drâa-Tafilalet regional administration, calling on authorities to intervene, allow the family to bury the deceased, and prevent similar incidents from happening again.
Following the protest, authorities in Errachidia province, in coordination with the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs, mediated between notables from the two tribes. The mediation resulted in a compromise agreement allowing the deceased woman to be buried in the cemetery located in the village of Taghanbout.
