Morocco

RABAT, Jan 18 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Morocco’s army said it had agreed with Israel to strengthen military cooperation, including in intelligence and cybersecurity, following defense meetings in Rabat.

The two countries “agreed to further strengthen cooperation and expand it to other areas, including intelligence, air defense, and electronic warfare,” the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces said in a statement.

The announcement on Tuesday follows the first meeting of the monitoring committee for Moroccan-Israeli defense cooperation in the Moroccan capital.

RABAT, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- A 5.3-magnitude earthquake jolted the province of Al Hoceima in northern Morocco at 9:12 a.m. (0812 GMT) Saturday, the Moroccan Institute of Geophysics said in a statement.

The epicenter of the tremor was initially determined to be at the town of Nekkour, at a depth of 21 km, it said.

No casualties have been reported so far.

RABAT, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Moroccan navy rescued 270 Spain-bound migrants in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic from Dec. 24, 2022 to Jan. 4, official news agency MAP reported on Thursday.

The migrants were from sub-Saharan Africa, Yemen and Syria, the agency quoted a military source as saying.

They have attempted dangerous crossings and encountered problems while boarding several makeshift boats, kayaks, jet skis, and even swimming, it added.

RABAT, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- The foreign direct investment in Morocco increased by 45.7 percent to 2.3 billion U.S. dollars in the first 11 months of 2022 compared to the same period last year, the country's Foreign Exchange Office said Friday.

The North African country's trade deficit increased by 56.9 percent year-on-year by the end of November, according to the report published by the office.

The deficit comes as a result of a faster growth of imports, which rose 42.3 percent to 64.7 billion dollars, while exports rose 33.1 percent to 37.3 billion dollars.

RABAT, Dec 29 (NNN-MAP) — Germany’s state-owned KfW Development Bank and Morocco signed on Tuesday three loan agreements worth 52.6 million euros for water projects.

The agreements were signed by Abderrahim El Hafidi, general director of the state-owned Moroccan Office for Electricity and Drinking Water (ONEE), and Jorg Dux, head of KfW’s water and sanitation department in North Africa.

The loan will increase and strengthen drinking water production, treatment, pumping, and transportation systems in many small and medium-sized towns, the agreement said.

26 Dec 2022; MEMO: Thousands of Moroccans protested against normalisation with Israel in several cities on Saturday, coinciding with the second anniversary since Rabat resumed its diplomatic relations with Tel Aviv.

The Moroccan Front in Support of Palestine and Against Normalisation said in a statement that these protests were against the normalisation agreement with Israel.

According to the statement, the protesters expressed their unconditional support for the Palestinian resistance.

22 Dec 2022; MEMO: Morocco is set break its perceived neutrality over the conflict in Ukraine, becoming the first African country to provide military support to Kyiv.

RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Tens of thousands of jubilant Moroccans welcomed their national soccer team home Tuesday after the players exceeded the North African nation’s wildest expectations and finished fourth at the World Cup in Qatar.

Fans packed squares and lined up along avenues and streets in and around Rabat, lighting flares, waving flags, dancing to the beat of drums and cheering as an open-top bus carrying the suit and tie-clad players rolled into the capital with a heavy police escort.

RABAT, Dec 17 (NNN-Xinhua) — France has restored “normal consular activity” with Morocco following a year-long visa dispute, French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna announced Friday.

Speaking at a press conference with her Moroccan counterpart Nasser Bourita in Rabat, Colonna said that the resumption of “a full consular relationship” between the two countries aims to “enhance human exchanges and deep interlinks between our two societies.”