Eid al-Adha : Chaos and jammed roads following a travel ban to and from eight Moroccan cities

After a travel ban to and from eight Moroccan cities was announced by the Health and Interior Ministries on Sunday, many Moroccans rushed into traveling before the implementation of said ban, scheduled for midnight.

Trying to reach their destination as soon as they heard of the ban, many Moroccans have found themselves in the worst traffic jams and in the longest waiting lines. The state of panic and rush was even behind a series of car accidents.

On social media, travelers trying to reach or leave one of the eight cities before the start of the ban shared photos and videos of the long waiting lines and the crowded highways, days ahead of Eid al-Adha festivities. Alongside the photos and videos, they voiced their anger at the unexpected decision which had left them with only a few hours to reach their destinations. Google Maps shows heavy congestion at the exits of all the cities targeted by the decision.

For the record, the Ministries of Health and Interior announced in a joint statement this evening that it was decided, from Sunday July 26 at midnight, to impose a travel ban to and from the cities of Tangier, Tetouan, Fez, Meknes, Casablanca, Berrechid, Settat and Marrakech.