News Flash

2026 World Cup : Morocco's bid gets a new ambassador

Morocco's 2026 bid committee announced Friday that it is hiring former German footballer Lothar Matthäus as an ambassador, says a communiqué sent to Yabiladi. The new ambassador will work on promoting the Moroccan bid for the 2026 World Cup. Lothar Matthäus is currently a manager, after captaining West Germany to victory in the 1990 FIFA World Cup, he was named European Footballer of the Year, says the same source. Matthäus has participated in five FIFA World Cups and

Qatar : Morocco's Youssef El Arabi named Al-Duhail's top-scorer

Moroccan international footballer Youssef El Arabi, who plays for Qatari club Al-Duhail, was presented Thursday night in Doha the Mansour Muftah Award for being the top-scorer at the QNB Stars League. El Arabi was awarded for the second time after scoring 26 goals, beating Tunisia's Youssef Lmsakni (25). Thanks to his brilliant performance, the Moroccan international striker has allowed Al-Duhail to win for the second time in a row the Qatari championship. For the record, the France-native

In 2017, 31 000 unaccompanied minors sought asylum in the EU

In 2017, 31,400 unaccompanied minors sought asylum in countries belonging to the European Union (EU), revealed on Wednesday Eurostat, a Directorate-General of the European Commission that provides statistical information to the institutions of the European Union. The current data represents half the number recorded in 2016 (63,200 unaccompanied minors). In total, in the European Union, unaccompanied minors accounted for 15% of all asylum seekers aged less than 18 years old. In 2017, the

Wanted in Spain, a Moroccan pedophile finally arrested in Italy

The Carabinieri arrested, on Wednesday, a 34-year-old Moroccan national in the city of Reggio Emilia (Italy). The arrested man was wanted in Spain after the release of a European arrest warrant by the Toledo court (Spain), says Gazetta di Reggio. The Moroccan fled Spain where he sexually abused two girls aged between 6 and 8 years old. The arrestee is facing a six-year sentence for «sexually abusing minors». The detainee is now in Reggio Emilia Prison waiting to be deported. The

Spanish police arrest members of a gang kidnapping migrants coming from Morocco

Members of a gang suspected of kidnapping migrants after they arrive to Spain have been arrested, Thursday, by the Spanish police, says AFP. The gang used to allegedly wait for migrants coming from Morocco in the port of Algeciras (southern Spain), bring them to a house in the same city in an attempt to find their families in Spain. Members of the gang would hold the migrants for ransom, take their phones and belongings and call their families asking for money, says a police statement. Gang

Hervé Renard names the players to 23-man side plus stand-by list for Russia 2018

National coach Hervé Renard has named his 23-man Morocco squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia next month, plus his additional three-man stand-by list. The list, published by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), is marked by the presence of three players from Morocco's football league, namely Ahmad Reda Tagnaouti (Ittihad Tangier), Badr Benoun (Raja Casablanca) and Ayoub El Kaabi (Renaissance Berkane). Morocco will compete in Group B alongside Spain, Portugal and Iran, with

Switzerland : Three men from Morocco and Algeria escape prison

Three prisoners from Morocco and Algeria have escaped the Favra prison in Switzerland on Wednesday night. They are still on the run, says the Swiss news agency ATS. The prisoners did it in a classical way since they cut the bars, tied sheets and climbed a wall. The three men aged between 22 and 35 years old were imprisoned and waiting for their deportation. The Department of Safety and Economy (DSE) states that the alarms «did not go off». The escape was only noticed on Thursday

FIFA ranking : Morocco retains 42nd Spot

Morocco's football team has retained its 42nd spot on the latest FIFA ranking, released on Thursday. With a total of 681 points, Morocco ranks 4th in the African continent behind Tunisia (14th worldwide), Senegal (28th) and DR Congo (38th). Germany, Brazil and Belgium top the international ranking. Moroccan national football team is expected to compete this June in Russia at the 2018 World Cup.

Rachid Alioui will not participate to the 2018 World Cup in Russia

Rachid Alioui will not join the Atlas Lions for the 2018 World Cup, scheduled for June in Russia. The Moroccan international striker had undergone a surgery on Wednesday and «cannot participate to the World Cup in Russia», says daily newspaper L’Equipe. Rachid Alioui a été opéré aujourd'hui d'une rupture d'un tendon de l'ischio-jambier. Il sera absent plusieurs mois.Le Nîmes Olympique lui souhaite un bon rétablissement et compte

Geert Wilders’ appeal against «fewer Moroccans» conviction to start Thursday

An appeal court in the Netherlands is expected to begin hearing evidence in the Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders’ «fewer Moroccans» case, reports Dutch News. The PVV leader told media ahead of the hearing that the ruling «does not interest [me] in the slightest». «They will never shut me up», said Wilders describing the trial as «judicial jihad». For the record, Wilders told the crowds in 2014 that «the Hague should be a city

Thursday is the 1st of Ramadan in Morocco

Thursday 17th of May is the 1st of Ramadan in Morocco, announced Wednesday the Ministry of Islamic Affairs. Moonsighting has proven that today is the last day of Shaaban, says the same source. Several other countries are to observe Ramadan tomorrow, such as France, Algeria, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Morocco condemns Israeli army's shooting at peaceful protestors in Gaza

Morocco strongly condemned on Wednesday the shooting by the Israeli army at participants in peaceful protests along the border with the Gaza strip, claiming dozens of victims and wounding hundreds of Palestinian citizens. Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said, in a press briefing with his Spanish counterpart Alfonso Dastis, in response to a question on Morocco's position on the latest events in Gaza, that Morocco strongly condemns the excessive use of force against unarmed Palestinian

China’s ZTT group to build a plant in Tangier

China’s ZTT, a wire and cable enterprise group, is to open a new plant in Tangier, reports Chinese news agency Xinhua quoting French-language newspaper L’économiste. The group has laid the foundation stone for the 40,000-square meters plant, says the same source. The new plant is expected to produce electric cables and optical fiber under an investment of 23.5 million U.S. dollars. The project will also secure 200 jobs, added Xinhua. ZTT Group operates in the telecom,

Asma Lamrabet releases her book «Women and Men in the Qur’ān» in the United States

Moroccan researcher and writer Asma Lamrabet has just published «Women and Men in the Qur’ān» in the United States. In her book, the scholar highlights the importance of distinguishing Islam as a spiritual message, promotes gender equality and speaks about the increasingly widespread Islamophobia. Originally published by Palgrave Macmillan, a publishing company headquartered in the UK, the book is translated from French into English by Muneera Salem-Murdock, former

Morocco to host UN Conference of African Ministers of Finance

Morocco was unanimously chosen to host the upcoming Ministerial Conference of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). African Finance Ministers, meeting at the Commission's headquarters in Addis Ababa, from the 11th to the 15th of April, welcomed the offer made by Mohamed Boussaid, Minister of Economy and Finance. Allowing Morocco to house the 52nd conference in 2019 was revealed during the 51st conference. The latter recognized the importance of the African Free Trade Area and the role it

CAF to put South Africa under pressure to back Morocco’s bid to host 2026 World Cup

The Confederation of African Football’s leadership will try Wednesday to convince South Africa to vote for Morocco’s bid to host the 2026 World Cup, officials told Reuters Tuesday. The decision comes as South Africa has been threatening to vote for the North American bid led by the United States. Head of the African football confederation Ahmad Ahmad is expected to persuade the South African Football Association’s representatives to back the Moroccan bid in

Twitter restricts access to the Moroccan Prime Minister's account

Has Prime Minister Saadeddine El Othmani's Twitter account been restricted ? In fact, Twitter has just started limiting access of accounts with suspicious behavior and which have ignored the terms and conditions. Then, would this have led to the suspention of the Prime Minister's Twitter account ? It seems that the series of similar tweets published Tuesday afternoon by the El Othmani with the hashtag #consumer_first has led to the unexpected measure. From now on, Twitter users wishing to

Morocco and the U.S. sign an agreement to preserve the Judeo-Moroccan heritage

The Archives du Maroc and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum have signed an agreement in Rabat allowing the two institutions to exchange archives related to Maghreb Jews during the Second World War, says MAP news agency. The initiative aims to further enrich the national historical records and preserve the Judeo-Moroccan heritage, allowing Archives du Maroc to become a research center for countries in the region, stated head of the Moroccan archives, Jamaa Baida. The Archives du