Hot weather and strong winds expected in Morocco from Saturday to Monday  (Read more...)

Mauritanian president meets with a Polisario envoy

On the same day that the Mauritanian ambassador to Morocco presented his credentials in Rabat, President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz received in the presidential palace in Nouakchott a Polisario envoy, namely Abdelkader Taleb Omar. The latter has spent a few days at the Mauritanian capital before meeting the president. In fact, he has already held talks with the Mauritanian Prime Minister, Yahya Ould Hademine, and two political party leaders : Sidi Mohamed Ould Maham from the Union for

The new Mauritanian ambassador to Morocco presents his credentials

After six years of waiting, a new Mauritanian ambassador has taken up residence in Rabat. On Tuesday, February 27, Mohamed Lemine Ould Aboye presented his credentials to the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mohamed Ali Lazrak. The diplomat was appointed last December. He had previously held similar positions in Niger and Senegal. In an interview conducted by the French-Language weekly Jeune Afrique, President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz stated that diplomatic relations

Melilla : The inhuman conditions of reception facilities for minor migrants

A Spanish TV channel showed images of the La Purísima minors' reception facilities, in Melilla, showcasing the inhuman conditions in which minor migrants who have been trying to reach Spain live. The center which hosts 170 people receives each year 5 million Euros to actually be home for 500 minor migrants. The images show children sleeping on the ground, forced to share mattresses, without cover and with no access to hot water. «I sleep in a room with 7 or 8 other people»,

Fisheries agreement : The Polisario rejoices over the CJEU's ruling

Unsurprisingly, the Polisario Front has openly welcomed the decision taken, Tuesday, by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) regarding the fisheries agreement concluded between Morocco and the European Union. The ruling delivered today comes as the separatist front is commemorating the 42nd anniversary of the «SADR»’s creation. M’Hamed Khadad, the Polisario coordinator with MINURSO, asked «all vessels fishing in the territorial waters of Western

Finland : Moroccan national is to face trial after the Turku knife attack

Abderrahman Bouanane, a Moroccan national who is accused of killing two people and injuring 8 others during a stabbing attack on the 18th of August in Turku is to face prosecution, reports Finnish online newspaper YLE. The suspect will be tried on «two counts of murder with terrorist intent and eight counts of attempted murder with terrorist intent». According to the same source, the preliminary hearings are to be held during spring and case will be heard by three

Morocco and the EU determined to pursue strategic partnership

The European Union (EU) and Morocco expressed on Tuesday their interest in pursuing, preserving and strengthening strategic partnership. They also declared that they are «determined to carry on cooperation in the field of fisheries». In a joint statement, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Moghrini and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Nasser Bourita stated that they

Raja athletic club to pay for the damages caused by its fans

Raja athletic club was ordered to play two matches behind closed doors and to pay a fine of 50,000 Dirhams following the acts of vandalism that took place during the game played against Kawkab Marrakech on Sunday, the Moroccan Royal Football Federation (FRMF) announced. The Federation’s Disciplinary Committee has also decided during a meeting held on Monday that the club will also have to repair the damage caused by their fans at the Marrakech Stadium facilities. The public prosecutor

Spain : A Moroccan national dies after falling off a building

A Moroccan national was killed Monday in Oviedo (northern Spain) after falling off a building, said a source from the consulate general of Morocco in Bilbao. The 45-year-old man fell from a window in a hotel in the center of Oviedo for reasons that remain so far unknown, said the same source. The local police had to temporarily interrupt traffic on the street next to the hotel because of the man's body lying on the road. An investigation has been launched to determine the causes and

CJEU : The fisheries agreement is valid but not applicable to the waters adjacent to Western Sahara

The Court of Justice and the European Union issued on Tuesday, 27th of February, the ruling regarding the fisheries agreement put into force since 2014. In its judgment, the European the highest court in the European Union in matters of European Union law concluded that «the 'Moroccan fishing zone' under the Protocol does not include the waters adjacent to the territory of Western Sahara». In a communiqué made public on the same day, the CJEU stated that «neither the

King Mohammed VI successfully undergoes an operation

King Mohammed VI successfully underwent an operation this Monday 26th February. He had on Saturday 20th January 2018 a heart rhythm disorder. The King's doctors said that medical examinations carried out for this purpose revealed an atrial flutter. The ablation by radio frequency of this arrhythmia, performed today at the Ambroise Paré clinic in Paris, allowed the normalization of the heart rhythm. At the end of a rest period as prescribed by his treating physicians, the King will

Journalist Taoufik Bouachrine under arrest for heavy criminal charges

Akhabr Al-Youm columnist and publisher Taoufik Bouachrine is prosecuted for heavy criminal charges, Monday, after being arrested on Friday, 23rd of February, and put in custody renewed on Saturday. The Attorney General at the Casablanca Appeal court decided on Monday that Taoufik Bouachrine is to be prosecuted for human trafficking, exploiting and taking advantage of unfortunate people, using power for sexual exploitation, threatening, rape, sexual assault , inciting people to

France : A doctor suspended because of Islamophobia

In Libourne (south-west France), a doctor was suspended for six months by the disciplinary chamber of aquitaine of the medical order, reports France Bleu. He is accused of discriminating against a patient's mother who was wearing Hijab, after the Paris attacks in 2015. On the day of the incident, the practitioner took the woman to task during a consultation, indicating that the scarf she wore was «a sign that she was not integrated» and that she had to «pick a

A flight diverted to Marrakech because of a half-naked passenger

A passenger who was on an early-morning flight from Stansted (London, UK) to Tenerife (Canary Islands), forced the plane to quickly divert to Marrakech airport on the weekend, reports ABC. The man took off his clothes while arguing with the plane’s staff. He also threatened and assaulted other crw members. Several tourists filmed the scene and published it on social media. Once in Morocco, the man was arrested by the local authorities. «If one of you f**** tries to take me

65 People in custody for vandalizing the Marrakech Stadium’s facilities

A total of 65 people have been remanded in custody after vandalizing the Marrakech Stadium which hosted a football game on Sunday, the public prosecutor at the first instance court of Marrakech said. According to investigations conducted by the judicial police under the supervision of the general prosecutor’s office, 14 members of the public forces were injured in these acts of violence which caused extensive material damage to the stadium’s facilities, a statement by the public

Invited by a Spanish association, Aminatou Haidar is in Seville

Once again, Spanish associations offer Aminatou Haidar the opportunity to leave Laayoune and meet international media. She traveled to Seville on Saturday to take part in a tribute ceremony to honor a Spanish national, known for his support for the Polisario Front. The event organizer is the Seville regional branch of the «association in support of the Sahrawi people». The latter is engaged in promoting the Polisario politics in Europe. For the record, in June 2017 the same

Four Raja fans killed in a car accident on their way to attend the Marrakech match

Four fans of the Raja athletic club were killed Sunday, 25th of February, in a car accident while driving to Marrakech where a match of their Botola-Pro League club was held, reports diez a Spanish-language online newspaper. The Casablanca club expressed its regrets on its official website after the accident, sending its condolences to the families of the deceased. They were on their way to Marrakech to show support for their club in their match against the Kawkab Athlétique Club. The

Germany : An initiative to help African diaspora do business in their countries of origin

Destined for Moroccans, Senegalese and Tunisians living in Europe, DiafrikInvest is a project that assist these nationals do business in their countries of origin with the help of the European Union. An appeal has been launched to support these future entrepreneurs in all their projects. In order to enlighten the diaspora about the opportunities offered by DiafrikInvest, the business climate and the other information about how to start a business, several meetings will be held on the 2nd of

Moroccan phosphate cargo : OCP denounces the ruling of the Port Elizabeth court

OCP, a state-owned company that exports phosphate rock, phosphoric acid and phosphate fertilizers, denounced on Starurday the verdict pronounced by the Port Elizabeth court regarding a phospohate cargo detained in South Africa since May 2017. Through its Twitter account, OCP declared that «predictably, the local court in Port Elizabeth, running short of arguments, rendered an unsubstained and unreasoned default summary judgement in the Cherry Blossom case». In a different tweet