The festival, running from November 11-19, features emerging directors from across the world who will "shape the cinema of tomorrow", according to Prince Moulay Rachid, who presides over the festival's foundation.

Scuttling an "international trafficking attempt" to West Africa, Morocco has made a large seizure of more than two million amphetamine-type captagon pills on the kingdom's northern coast. The drugs were hidden inside a goods container onboard a maritime transport ship headed from Lebanon to West Africa.

Algeria mediated a reconciliation deal in October between rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas. While few believe the deal will last, it was seen as a public relations coup for Algeria, which has been seeking an enhanced regional and international role, on the back of its growing status as a...

The protest was organized by the country's main trade union, the UNTM, which is close to the Justice and Development Party (PJD). The PJD was routed in legislative elections in September 2021, when the liberal RNI party -- led by Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch -- performed well.

The Polisario Front is campaigning for an independent state in the Western Sahara, a vast stretch of phosphate-rich desert that was controlled by Spain between 1884 and 1975. The Polisario proclaimed the SADR in 1976, placing it in conflict with Morocco, which considers the Western Sahara to be part of...

Aiming to bolster cooperation on renewable energy, Morocco and the European Union have signed a "green partnership" deal in order to offer alternatives for European nations that are trying to wean themselves off fossil fuels, whose prices have soared in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Rabat, Morocco---A Takaful insurance company will be established in Morocco by Qatar Islamic Bank, Atlanta Insurance and Moroccan Tourism and Real Estate Loan Bank (CIH) after the Moroccan Supervisory Authority of Insurance and Social Welfare (ACAPS) approved the decision. Takaful is Sharia-compliant Islamic insurance wherein members contribute money into a pool...

The arrests are the latest after courts handed heavy prison sentences to several dozen people, many from Sudan, on charges including entering Morocco illegally and violence against security personnel. A judicial source told AFP that 25 migrants from Sudan and Chad were detained on Sunday in the Gourougou forest

Known for his criticism of the authorities, Monjib was sentenced in January last year to 12 months in prison, after a trial opened in 2015 and was repeatedly postponed.

The UN experts said publishing the column was a matter of freedom of expression, and concluded that he had been "detained for peacefully exercising that right".

The 18 migrants -- among more than 60 arrested following the Melilla tragedy -- had initially been sentenced to 11 months in prison.

Rainfall in Morocco is set to decline by 11 percent and average temperatures are set to rise by 1.3 percent by 2050, according to forecasts from the Ministry of Agriculture.

The Spanish enclaves of Melilla and Ceuta have long been a magnet for people fleeing violence and poverty across Africa and seeking refuge via the continent's only land borders with the EU. Since the June 24 incident, dozens of mostly Sudanese migrants have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from...

Taking offense at what it calls "cultural appropriation", Morocco has asked Adidas to cancel newly designed footfall tops for Algeria. A lawyer for Morocco has demanded the withdrawal within two weeks of the Algerian sports top it claimed was "inspired by the art" of Moroccan zellige.

Police arrested a 48-year-old suspect in connection with the incident, the Directorate General of National Security (DGSN) said in a statement. The victims are thought to have consumed the toxic alcohol in the suspect's store, where investigators later found nearly 50 litres of the liquid, media reports said. Moroccan law...

A Moroccan prisoner of war released as part of an exchange between Moscow and Kyiv said he wanted to draw attention to the "struggle" of Ukraine as he returned home.

Nearly three months after the border tragedy in which two dozen migrants died, a Moroccan appeals court has sentenced 12 Sudanese migrants to three years in jail over violence. Some 2,000 people, many of them Sudanese, stormed the frontier on June 24 in an attempt to reach Spanish territory.

The agreement to go ahead with the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline project was inked in Rabat by the two countries and the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS), a joint statement said. The 5,600 kilometre (nearly 3,500 mile) pipeline would traverse 13 African countries along the Atlantic coast.

The organisers had announced the October 15-30 auto rally would cross through Moroccan-controlled areas of the North African territory. A swathe of mineral-rich desert on Africa's Atlantic coast, the former Spanish colony is disputed between Morocco and the Algeria-backed Polisario, which claims it as the Sahrawi Arab Republic.

Around 100 people chanted slogans against the rapprochement between Morocco and Israel, criticising its ambassador David Govrin and Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita. Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported Monday that a foreign ministry delegation had been dispatched to Rabat, following sexual abuse allegations against envoy Govrin.

The Algerian-backed Polisario Front wants an independent state in the Western Sahara, a vast stretch of mineral-rich desert which Morocco sees as a sovereign part of its own territory.

Tunisia said Saturday it would recall its ambassador from Morocco for consultations, a day after the kingdom did the same in response to Tunisia's president hosting the Polisario movement's head. The Polisario wants an independent state in Western Sahara, a stretch of mineral-rich desert which Morocco sees as a part...

Morocco has taken offense at the hosting of the head of the Polisario movement by Tunisia’s president and recalled its ambassador in Tunis. The Polisario wants an independent state in the Western Sahara, a large mineral-rich area Morocco sees as a sovereign part of its country.

Only five football clubs in the region — Al-Fateh, Al-Hilal and Al-Faisali of Saudi Arabia, as well as Morocco's Al-Wydad and Nahdet Berkane —have reported budgetary excess.

King Mohammed VI asked allies to "clarify their stance" on the matter, without specifying which countries he was addressing, although he saluted the United States' "incontrovertible" position. The former US President Donald Trump recognized Morocco's sovereignty over the disputed former Spanish colony.

An average of 3,500 deaths and 12,000 injuries have been recorded annually in Morocco, according to the National Road Safety Agency, with an average of 10 deaths per day.

Water shortage has dealt a crippling blow to farming in the North African country as successive droughts exact a heavy economic cost.

A Jordanian-Moroccan hospitality and tourism training project will be launched in the Hashemite Kingdom as part of the strategic partnership between the two countries, Moroccan Ambassador Sidi Muhammad Khaled Al-Nasiri announced on Saturday.

No longer having access to potable running water, the villagers of Ouled Essi Masseoud rely solely on sporadic supplies in public fountains and from private wells. The situation is critical, given the village's position in the agricultural province of Settat, near the Oum Errabia River and the Al Massira Dam,...

Morocco's Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch, a billionaire petrol baron, is facing a growing online campaign demanding he step down as fuel prices -- and energy firms' profits -- surge. The government of the North African kingdom, which is heavily reliant on oil imports, insists it is doing its best to...

Morocco's King Mohammed VI used an address on Saturday to "once again" reiterate his openness to restoring ties with Algeria, which broke off diplomatic relations with Rabat last year.

The New York-based group presented the findings in a 141-page report focusing on eight journalists and public figures.

Morocco and Israel added legal links to a growing list of cooperation accords since they normalized relations in 2020, during a visit Tuesday by Israeli Justice Minister Gideon Saar. He signed a judicial accord in Rabat with his Moroccan counterpart Abdellatif Ouahbi. A joint statement said the two countries would...

Washington wants to foster billions of dollars of investment in Africa, the head of its delegation to a US-Africa business summit that began in Morocco on Wednesday told AFP. Alice Albright, chief executive of US development agency Millennium Challenge Corporation, said Washington "is seeking to catalyze billions of dollars in...

Israeli army chief Aviv Kohavi, who arrived Monday, met with the Inspector General of the Royal Armed Forces Belkhir El Farouk, an Israeli army statement said.

Israel's army chief arrived in Morocco on Monday for meetings with senior defence officials, military sources said, as cooperation between the countries expands following a normalisation of ties. Aviv Kohavi's three-day trip is the first official visit of an Israeli army chief to the North African kingdom.

Morocco has detained a seventh suspect in a sexual abuse and trafficking case against French insurance tycoon Jacques Bouthier, while a seventh woman has lodged a case against him, lawyers said Saturday.

Morocco's King Mohammed VI has authorised a reorganisation of the country's Jewish community, a "component" of national culture in the North African country, according to the royal palace. The measures were presented to a council of ministers meeting attended on Wednesday by the country's monarch and crown prince, at Rabat's...

At least 23 migrants who died last month in a mass attempt to enter the Spanish enclave of Melilla from Morocco likely "suffocated", Morocco's state-backed CNDH rights group said on Wednesday. The death toll after around 2,000 people, many from Sudan, stormed the frontier on June 24 was the worst...

Morocco called Tuesday for a return to regional roundtable talks on a peace deal over the Western Sahara, a format rejected by neighbouring Algeria which says it masks the nature of the conflict. Morocco's top diplomat Nasser Bourita made the comments in a statement after a meeting with United Nations...

The trial of 36 migrants accused of "illegally entering" Morocco started Monday but was immediately halted, lawyers said, days after a mass attempt to cross into a Spanish enclave.

The United Nations envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, was on a visit to Morocco on Monday but has cancelled a planned trip to the disputed territory itself, the UN said. Staffan de Mistura was "in Rabat to meet with Moroccan officials", spokesman Stephane Dujarric told journalists in New...

The African Union Commission chief has voiced his shock at the "violent and degrading" treatment of African migrants trying to cross from Morocco into Spain after 23 people died, and called for an investigation in the incident. About 2,000 migrants stormed the heavily-fortified border between the Moroccan region of Nador...

Israeli Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked arrived Monday in Morocco for a string of meetings with officials, a diplomatic source said, as cooperation grows between the two countries after they mended ties. Shaked is the fourth Israeli minister to visit the North African kingdom since the two countries re-established ties in...

Petrol prices rose to record highs in Morocco on Thursday, fuelling anger among unions who demanded the government of energy tycoon Aziz Akhannouch act to protect consumers. Drivers in Morocco, which relies heavily on imported oil products whose prices have soared since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, must now pay 18...

The Moroccan women's basketball team hosted their Israeli counterparts for the first time on Wednesday in a quiet slice of sporting diplomacy played out in front of invited guests only. The friendly game, a first in the framework of sports cooperation since the normalization of ties between the two countries...

The Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Jordan amounted to $622 million in 2021, constituting 1.2 percent of the Arab region's total FDI. The Arab Investment and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (Dhaman) issued data Tuesday which confirmed this. The Arab region's FDI in 2021 went up by 42 percent to $53...

Morocco has refused entry to passengers on a German cruise liner after some tested positive for Covid-19, Moroccan media reported Wednesday. The Mein Schiff Herz, owned by German tourism giant TUI and capable of carrying 1,900 passengers plus crew, had been meant to dock in Tangiers on the Gibraltar Straits...

Morocco on Sunday begins welcoming an influx of its citizens living in Europe after the pandemic led to a halt in what has been called one of the world's biggest cross-continental migrations. The last such effort in the summer of 2019 saw 3.3 million people and more than three quarters...

Morocco's national regulatory agency overseeing the use of cannabis for medical use met for the first time Thursday in one of the last steps before legalisation in the world's top cannabis-resin producer. The North African nation adopted a law in 2021 provisionally authorising the legal uses of cannabis for medical,...