Real Madrid star Brahim Diaz ready to write history with Morocco  (Read more...)

Soluna’s Blockchain wind farm in Dakhla will not make cryptocurrency transactions in Morocco

Blockchain company Soluna’s wind farm in Dakhla will «not make cryptocurrency transactions in Morocco where financial authorities have warned against the use of cryptocurrencies», the firm’s chief executive John Belizaire told Reuters Friday in an interview.   The project was announced in July by Brookstone Partners, a New York-headquartered firm that backs through its Morocco subsidiary, Platinum Power, Soluna to build a 900-megawatt wind farm

Three Moroccan films to be screened at the Arab Film Festival in Brazil

Morocco will be represented at the thirteenth edition of the Festival of Arab Cinema in Brazil, held from August 8th to the 27th in Sao Paulo. Three Moroccan films will be screened at the event. According to the newspaper Libération, the Brazilian audience will discover the movie «Razzia» directed by Nabil Ayouch, «Fièvres» by Hicham Ayouch and «Volubilis» by Faouzi Bensaïdi. While the first movie addresses women rights and freedom,

Spanish officials want to link Melilla and Ceuta to Morocco by sea

One month after Morocco announced that it is unilaterally suspending commercial customs at the Beni-Ensar border crossing in Melilla, the secretary general of the Spanish People’s Party in the enclave, Miguel Marin, referred to a possible sea link between Morocco and city. The idea is to link Melilla to Morocco by ferry instead of using land borders. This proposal includes also tourists, says Melilla Hoy. Miguel Marin, who is also head of Melilla’s port authority, stressed

Belgium : An Ecolo candidate slammed for a photo he took at the Moroccan embassy

Ecolo candidate Lahoussine Fadel, who is running for the Belgian local elections in Molenbeek, was criticized for taking a picture with Secretary of State for Asylum, Migration and Administrative Simplification Theo Francken. The photo was surprising, especially as the politician has slammed on several occasions the Ecolo party which is based on green politics. Belgian media platforms reported that after receiving harsh comments, the photo has been deleted. The same source adds that

Sahara : Horst Köhler reportedly recommended the relaunching of direct negotiations

On Wednesday at the UN Security Council, Horst Köhler took the opportunity to recommend the relaunching of «direct negotiations» between Morocco and the Polisario, a well-informed source told Yabiladi on Thursday. Indeed, the personal envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Western Sahara is committed to relaunch negotiations similar to the ones held in Manhasset in 2007 and 2008. Resolution 2414, adopted in April, emphasized «the importance of a renewed commitment by the

Germany wants to expel a Moroccan national involved in the September 11 attacks

A Moroccan national, convicted of helping three of the suicide pilots in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States, is expected to be released in October and deported to Morocco, report German online newspaper Morngen Post. The inmate identified as Mounir al-Motassadeq was convicted in 2007 of «membership in a terrorist organization and accessory to murder for aiding the three hijackers who lived in Hamburg», says the same source. According to German newspaper Bild,

U.S. clothing retailer Gap criticized for releasing a new campaign featuring a little girl in hijab

American clothing retailer Gap released its back-to-school campaign, on July 24th. The ad featured a veiled little girl, which sparked tension on social media, reports TV channel LCI. The little girl was wearing a blue scarf in the campaign released in the United States and published on the brand’s Twitter account and website. LCI said, however, that it is impossible to purchase the same veil on the brand’s website. «We're a company that makes clothes. We're also a

Two Moroccans arrested in Spain for sexually assaulting a British tourist

Two young Moroccan nationals were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a British tourist in the seaside resort of Playa de las Américas, located on the island of Tenerife in the archipelago of Canaries, police sources told Spanish news agency Europa Press. One of the two young men is in an irregular situation. The victim first met one of the two suspects on Saturday 4th, and went out with him the next day to a nightclub; he then came with a friend. During the evening, the

A Moroccan woman allegedly raped by a 40-year-old Emirati man with AIDS

An Emirati man with AIDS has been accused of raping a 24-year-old Moroccan woman in Dubai, UAE, reports online newspaper Khaleej Times on Thursday. The man is standing trial at the Dubai Court of First Instance. The 40-year-old suspect said he was innocent, stressing that he was sick. Indeed, medical examinations report revealed that he has AIDS and other «transmittable diseases», says the same source. During a hearing held in the Emirati court, the victim said she was stalked by

MPs from the UK's Conservative Party annoyed by Boris Johnson’s burka comments

British politician Boris Johnson’s remarks on the full-face veil have angered members of his party. British Prime Minister Theresa May said that the former London mayor and former foreign Minister «has caused offence by saying that Muslim women who wear burkas look like 'letterboxes' or 'bank robbers'», reports the Guardian. «Nobody is allowed to tell a woman how to dress», stressed May, referring to Johnson’s language. Meanwhile, Sayeeda Warsi, member of

Ceuta : A Moroccan national arrested for murder and international drug trafficking

A Moroccan national who has been wanted in the Kingdom for drug trafficking and homicide was arrested on Wednesday, 8th of August, in Ceuta, says Spanish press agency Europa Press. On the run since March, the man carried a fake Spanish ID. He was identified after the Moroccan and Spanish authorities collaborated, exchanging information on his file. A court in Spain decided to extradite the suspect to Morocco, concludes the same source.

Alexandre Benalla is believed to be hired by French reality TV star Ayem Nour

Filmed while beating protesters on May the 1st, Alexandre Benalla continues to make headlines in France. Indeed, Emmanuel Macron's former top bodyguard have reportedly found a new job and is currently in Marrakech.  The information was revealed on an Instagram account dedicated to French reality TV stars. According to TvRealityFr, Alexandre Benalla was hired as Ayem Nour’s bodyguard, a former reality TV star and a TV host, as well as her son. The same source indicates that Ayem

Summer season : Several Ryanair flights canceled and Morocco is affected

Royal Air Maroc is no longer the only airline company affected by a social crisis during the current summer season. 250 Ryanair flights departing and coming from Germany will be canceled on August 10th, the Irish low-cost airline announced on Wednesday. The Irish company had, previously, revealed that 146 of its flights will canceled due to a cabin crew strike on August 10th in Sweden, Belgium and Ireland, reports Le Point. The Belgian media RTBF states that these 104

Mauritanian Foreign Affairs Minister attends a reception on the Throne Day

Mauritania’s Foreign Affairs Minister Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed attended a reception hosted last week in Nouakchott by the Moroccan ambassador, to commemorate the day of the King Mohammed VI’s accession to the throne. The Mauritanian senior official was accompanied by several other officials from the ministry. The presence of Ould Cheikh Ahmed at the throne celebration is a turning point in the Moroccan Mauritanian diplomatic relations. Isselkou Ould Ahmed Izidbih, the former

A Canadian politician of Moroccan descent runs for election to help Muslim women

Aziza Dini is a 34-year-old politician who is running for the Quebec’s provincial election, scheduled for October. The Canadian citizen of Moroccan descent, who is a member of the Quebec Green Party (PVQ), is the first veiled woman to stand for election in the French-speaking province. In a recent interview with the Belgian online newspaper La Libre, Dini says she is «proud» to be a veiled female politician in Quebec, stressing that one must «be careful with

A Swiss journalist launches «Swiss Stop Islam Award» to honor Islamophobic personalities

An anti-Islam Swiss free-lance journalist, named Giorgio Ghiringhelli and known as «Il ghiro», has launched the «Swiss Stop Islam Award», to honor personalities fighting against «Islamic colonization» in Switzerland, reports French-language Swiss online newspaper Le Matin. The Islamophobic award is part of a campaign initiated by a Swiss platform known as Tell-Geschoss.ch. «Swiss Stop Islam Award» and as its title suggests, will award every

Importing U.S. poultry is part of a 2006 agreement, says Morocco’s Agriculture Ministry

For Morocco’s Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, importing American poultry products to the Kingdom is part of the free-trade agreement signed in 2004 and implemented in January 2006, said the department in a statement sent Tuesday to Yabiladi. The Ministry’s explanation comes as the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office and the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced, Tuesday, that Rabat will start importing American poultry products for the first time in 2018. In its

Alleged ISIS member arrested in Spain in collaboration with Morocco

The Spanish Interior Ministry announced on Tuesday the arrest in Vitoria (north of Spain), in collaboration with the Moroccan authorities, of an alleged member of ISIS terrorist organization for which he was carrying out tasks related to indoctrination and recruitment. The suspect is a 21-year-old man of Moroccan nationality, said the same source in a statement, adding that he was known for his membership in radical groups with jihadist ideology in Algeciras (South), the city where he