Over 17 Tons of Cannabis Resin Seized Near Beach Between Safi, Essaouira
The security operation took place on the coast of Sidi Ishak between Safi and Essaouira. Officers from Marrakech's prefectural judicial police service acted on precise intelligence provided by the General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DGST).
Authorities intercepted a cargo truck carrying nearly 18 tons of cannabis resin. The drugs were about to be loaded onto two inflatable boats seized at the scene.
Search operations in the area yielded additional evidence. Police confiscated maritime navigation equipment and powerful marine engines. These items were to be used in the international drug trafficking operation.
The General Directorate of National Security (DGSN) released a statement confirming the seizure. Investigations are continuing under proper judicial supervision. Authorities are working to identify and apprehend all individuals involved in this criminal activity. They are also investigating potential national and international connections.
This operation demonstrates the ongoing joint efforts between DGSN and DGST services. Both agencies remain committed to fighting international drug trafficking networks
MWN with MAP Tags: Cannabisdrug trafficking
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Morocco World
20 hours ago
- Morocco World
Activist Sion Assidon in Coma After Serious Head Injury in Mohammedia
Marrakech – Left-wing activist and anti-normalization figure Sion Assidon remains in a coma at a clinic in Mohammedia following a serious head and face injury. The 77-year-old president of the Moroccan branch of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement was found unconscious at his home on Monday. According to sources close to Assidon, he reportedly fell from a staircase or ladder while trimming trees at his residence on Saturday. After the incident, he managed to reach his living room and sit on a couch, but remained unconscious until Monday, when a concerned colleague discovered him after he missed a meeting. Despite this plausible explanation, the Mohammedia prosecutor's office immediately ordered an investigation. Police visited the scene, seized Assidon's phone and computer, and stationed an officer outside his home. According to converging reports, Assidon underwent urgent surgery on Monday night after he was rushed to the hospital. His personal physician recommended emergency head surgery, which was successfully performed, but the anti-Zionist activist remains comatose. Meanwhile, several left-wing activists gathered outside the clinic to inquire about his health condition. A strong police presence from various units has been observed around the facility. The Moroccan Observatory Against Normalization expressed 'deep concern' about Assidon's hospitalization, stating in a communiqué that he was transferred to the hospital 'in a state of unconsciousness.' Ahmed Ouihmane, president of the Observatory, wrote on his personal Facebook account that Assidon underwent 'a delicate brain operation.' He added that, 'according to information circulating in his entourage and among opponents of normalization, his body shows suspicious signs that require a more thorough medical and security investigation to determine the circumstances of what really happened.' Born in 1948 in Casablanca to a Jewish family, Sion Assidon is a historical figure in Moroccan activism. A prominent far-left figure, he spent twelve years in prison between 1972 and 1984 for undermining state security. In 1996, he co-founded the anti-corruption association Transparency Morocco, and in 2010, launched the Moroccan branch of BDS. The Observatory's statement expressed 'full solidarity' with Assidon and his family, wishing him a 'speedy recovery' so he could 'resume his commitment.' It also underlined Assidon's dedication to fighting against genocide, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid, as well as his sacrifices, including years of imprisonment for defending democracy.
Morocco World
20 hours ago
- Morocco World
Feminist Activist Ibtissam Lachgar Faces Trial in Detention for Blasphemy
Marrakech – The Rabat prosecutor's office has decided to prosecute feminist activist Ibtissam Lachgar in detention. She was presented to the public prosecutor on Tuesday, following her arrest by the National Brigade of Judicial Police (BNPJ) on Sunday. Lachgar, also known as 'Betty' on social media, was arrested after posting a photo of herself wearing a t-shirt with inscriptions deemed offensive to divinity. The image showed her wearing a shirt with 'Allah' followed by 'is lesbian' – a play on a well-known feminist slogan, according to her explanation. The controversial post was accompanied by text describing Islam as 'fascist, phallocratic and misogynistic.' This publication sparked outrage online, with many users calling for her arrest. The 50-year-old activist is a prominent figure in Morocco's fight for individual liberties. A clinical psychologist and psychotherapist specializing in criminology, she co-founded the Alternative Movement for Individual Liberties (MALI), advocating for issues including reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and secularism. Former Justice Minister El Mostapha Ramid strongly condemned Lachgar's publication. In a Facebook post, he described it as 'a premeditated act' and 'an intentional offense to divinity.' Ramid stated that while he doesn't support excessive censorship, 'when it comes to attacking sacred religious symbols deliberately and in a planned manner, no tolerance is possible.' The former PJD minister referenced Article 267.5 of the Penal Code, which punishes attacks on constitutional religious constants. He argued that if Lachgar's statements are proven, 'they do not constitute a simple opinion or ideological divergence, but an intentional insult toward God, which requires judicial prosecution.' The Moroccan penal code prescribes six months to two years in prison and/or a fine of MAD 20,000 to 200,000 ($2,000 to $20,000) for any attack on the Islamic religion. Penalties can increase to five years if the 'outrage' is committed through public means, including electronic platforms. Before her arrest, Lachgar had reported experiencing severe online harassment. On Facebook, she claimed to have received 'thousands of threats of rape, death, calls for lynching and stoning' following her post. Even in Europe, her views are considered 'hyperprogressive' Some observers have mixed opinions about her approach. Moroccan journalist Nora Fouari commented that 'provocation must be intelligent, well-studied, and appropriate for its context, not merely for appearance or attention-seeking.' She questioned the visibility of LGBTQ+ individuals on TikTok and Instagram, asking, 'Who's actually talking to them?' Fouari noted that despite years of MALI's 'struggle' for liberties using these methods, they have achieved little progress, pleasing neither the state nor society, nor even international organizations. She argued that Morocco is gradually moving toward more individual freedoms at its own pace to maintain balance, adding, 'You didn't need to stir up a hornet's nest.' Others defend Lachgar's approach, arguing that provocation indeed requires consciousness, not impulsiveness. They contend that LGBTQ+ individuals aren't prominent on TikTok and Instagram seeking attention, but because they are marginalized, criminalized, and persecuted, with their voice being their only means of survival. These supporters claim that while some say movements like MALI 'haven't achieved anything,' they have at least stirred stagnant waters and broken the wall of silence. They assert that Morocco is indeed moving toward expanding individual freedoms, but not through silence and obedience – rather through courage and confrontation. Meanwhile, critics argue that 'the madness' of the left and extreme feminism doesn't yield results in Moroccan soil. For them, it produces adverse effects and has given the Brotherhood, Salafists, jihadist networks, and other ultra-conservative currents a free goal against Moroccan modernity and rational, balanced modernists. Swiss-based Moroccan human rights activist Kacem El Ghazzali noted in his analysis that Lachgar belongs to a privileged class of activists who typically avoid arrest despite being critical. He described her as 'a visionary who brings ideas from a possible future into the present,' adding that even in Europe, her views are considered 'hyperprogressive.' El Ghazzali pointed out that Lachgar has alienated potential supporters: feminists due to her gender-critical positions, conservatives despite her Islam-critical statements because of her stance on abortion, and liberal secularists in Morocco who sympathize but cannot publicly support her because 'Lachgar's freedom notions far exceed existing fantasies.' The legal proceedings continue as public opinion remains divided between defenders of freedom of expression and advocates for strict law enforcement to preserve religious values. Tags: blasphemyIbtissam lachgar
Ya Biladi
a day ago
- Ya Biladi
Moroccan returning from abroad burdened by obstacles to organic restaurant project in Casablanca
After 24 years living abroad, Moroccan expatriate Hanane Sanoussi returned from France to her home country with an investment project she hopes will serve the community and contribute to the local economy. A professor and head of a digital innovation lab, Sanoussi decided, in partnership with her brother, to launch a chain of organic, inclusive, and socially minded restaurants primarily aimed at people with metabolic diseases. The project, she told Yabiladi, will run «exclusively on electricity, respecting environmental and health standards as well as quiet hours». She added that it had been «planned with care», with the expectation of creating around ten jobs at launch. The first branch is set to open in the Racine district of Casablanca, on Abdelatif Benkaddour Street. But the project's start did not go as planned. Just days after receiving her work permit, a copy of which Yabiladi has seen, Sanoussi says she was surprised when, on August 5, a committee composed of representatives from the municipality, urban planning, local authorities, and civil protection arrived without prior notice or an official mission order. She says the committee «only inspected and observed, ignoring the documents I had with me, before leaving». «I received a late-night call from the sheikh (a local authority representative) telling me that the Caid (District chief) would come in the morning to inspect the site and asking me to open the premises for her», she recounted. «But when I arrived, I was met by the committee, without any official request and without being allowed to have my project's architect present to explain the situation». An uncompromising administration Two days later, Sanoussi received a formal notice, also seen by Yabiladi, ordering her to halt all work immediately, citing an alleged violation involving an interior bench placed 40 cm from its intended location and a change to the facade. «The work had not even started yet», she said, presenting supporting documents, including a notary-certified inspection report, dated photographs, and a cadastral map. «I refused to sign the notice that ordered me to stop work without any grace period or alternative proposal. I truly felt humiliated», she shared. She says she went to the Casablanca Prefecture with all her documents and evidence, but was sent away without a solution and told again to stop work, despite having a lease that covers «all commercial activities» and a building permit signed by all relevant parties. According to Sanoussi, the committee's objection is based on a discrepancy in the shop's facade as shown in the 2016 urban development plan prepared by the property developer. However, she insists the facade was never built according to that plan from the start. «I have proof that the facade has never been altered, neither since the owner purchased the property nor since I began working on it. But I was not able to present this evidence; I could not find anyone willing to listen to me», she said. She adds that the committee did not propose any modification or alternative solution, merely insisting she stop the work. She says she only learned she needed to file a modification request after her own research, a step her architect has since taken, with the file still under review. Opposition from the neighbors Sanoussi believes the delays are linked to opposition from neighbors. She claims the head of the owners' association told her no restaurant activity would be allowed in the building and even sent her a text message stating he had taken steps to block any such project. She says she has not received any formal notification to that effect. «I am just one of many Moroccans abroad who came back with good intentions and a desire to invest, but I have found myself facing obstacles I do not know how to navigate», she said. Yabiladi also contacted the head of the building's owners' association, who shared his version of events: «No decision has been made yet. We submitted a letter to the authorities, but it is not up to us, the committee is the one authorized to make the final decision». He added that all residents oppose having a restaurant under their building: «We live in a closed alley with no parking spaces. Ground-floor residents will be in a difficult situation because the premises are small and have no gas outlet. Even if it runs on electricity, there will still be smells because there is no ventilation system». «From the start, the space was intended for a bookstore, a pharmacy, or a small retail shop. Setting up a restaurant here would be very complicated for the neighborhood. In any case, we are against it», he said. This position contradicts the building's co-ownership regulations, reviewed by Yabiladi, which state the premises are for commercial use without specifying the type of business or imposing any exceptions. The lease signed between Hanane Sanoussi and the property owner, a copy of which was also obtained by Yabiladi, clearly states the premises can be used for all food-related commercial activities, including cafés, restaurants, bakeries, and ice cream shops. Yabiladi attempted to contact the relevant authorities to get their side of the story and to clarify the reasons for the immediate halt order, but to no avail.
