
Eid al-Adha : Inmates can receive family visits but without meal baskets
Additionally, a special meal program will be provided to the inmates during this period, the Delegation stated in a press release on Wednesday. Given the deep religious and social significance of Eid al-Adha in Moroccan society, the celebration will take place within the prisons without performing the sacrificial ritual. This decision respects the royal directive to abstain from carrying out the Eid sacrifice, the statement added.
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What Pretoria and its allies labeled a 'controversy' erupted after Zuma met with Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita on July 15 in Rabat, where both South African and Moroccan flags were prominently displayed. This visual diplomatic parity triggered immediate backlash from the ANC regime, which has long clung to its isolated stance of backing the Polisario Front's separatist claims in the Sahara – a position entrenched since 2004 under then-President Thabo Mbeki. A visit fully coordinated with South Africa's embassy in Rabat Official documentation obtained by journalists thoroughly dismantles Pretoria's protestations. A diplomatic note from the South African Embassy in Rabat to Morocco's Foreign Ministry, dated July 11, explicitly requested VIP treatment for Zuma's delegation. The embassy asked Moroccan authorities to 'facilitate passage through the honor salon of Rabat-Salé airport for a delegation led by former South African President H.E. Mr. Jacob Zuma.' The embassy not only arranged for Zuma's arrival on July 15 and departure on July 18, but also communicated passport details for his entire delegation and advance team, which arrived on July 12, three days before the former president. A diplomatic note from the South African Embassy in Rabat to Morocco's Foreign Ministry, dated July 11, explicitly requested VIP treatment for Zuma's delegation. The South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) spokesperson Chrispin Phiri claimed the flag display constituted 'an abuse of existing protocol and decorum and undermines official bilateral relations.' He claimed that national symbols such as the flag somehow convey official state endorsement. Their display in such contexts, he argued, 'elevates the perception of the encounter to that of a state-to-state engagement,' which he insisted was not the case. According to him, 'the government of the Republic of South Africa holds the firm view that the use of its national symbols in contexts implying official state endorsement of non-governmental engagements is inappropriate, irrespective of the setting.' Yet these assertions ring hollow, sounding more like political theatre than a serious diplomatic principle, given the embassy's active facilitation of the visit and its written requests for diplomatic courtesies. Morocco has maintained a dignified response to South Africa's diplomatic tantrum. According to sources cited by the media, the South African flag was displayed at Zuma's explicit request as a gesture of respect. The Moroccan government regularly hosts representatives from various political organizations across Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Americas. In October 2024, a delegation from South Africa's ruling ANC, led by Obed Bapela, was received at the Moroccan Foreign Ministry, in an indication of the North African country's openness to dialogue with all South African political actors. Pretoria's ideological rigidity During his Morocco visit, Zuma shattered the ANC's carefully cultivated illusion of South African unity on the Sahara question, a willfully long-perpetuated dispute. He declared that his Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, which now holds seats in Parliament, supports Morocco's Autonomy Plan as it 'will allow meaningful local governance by the populations of the Sahara region, while guaranteeing Morocco its sovereignty over the Sahara.' The visit triggered a vitriolic response from ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula, who resorted to name-calling, branding Zuma a 'sellout' for supporting Morocco. 'Zuma is no messiah. He is a sellout of note,' Mbalula fumed, in a display of the ANC's chronic inability to confront substantive diplomatic differences without resorting to personal attacks. Floyd Shivambu, former MK Party secretary-general, also criticized Zuma's recognition of Moroccan sovereignty, labeling it 'opportunistic' and contrary to South Africa's historical support for 'oppressed peoples.' These objections reveal the rigid ideological dogma that shackles South Africa's foreign policy, even as the vast majority of African nations pivot toward pragmatic and mutually beneficial engagement with Morocco. Zuma was accompanied during the visit by the MK Party's Head of Presidency, Magasela Mzobe, further legitimizing the diplomatic nature of the engagement. The former president's four-day trip has exposed deep fractures in South Africa's political landscape, as the ruling ANC grips desperately to its Cold War-era positions, much like the Algerian regime that incessantly bellows about self-determination as a cover for its internal crises – knowing that an end to the dispute would mean the end of its manufactured relevance. More than two-thirds of African countries now recognize Morocco's territorial integrity or maintain constructive positions on the Sahara dispute. This growing continental consensus leaves the South African government increasingly isolated as it stubbornly adheres to outdated ideological stances while the rest of Africa pursues realistic solutions for regional stability and development. The diplomatic spat over flag protocol serves as a transparent attempt to divert attention from the substantive issue: South Africa's fading influence in continental affairs and the crumbling of its position on the Sahara. While Pretoria fumes over symbolic matters, Morocco continues to gather international support for its autonomy initiative as the viable path forward for regional peace and development. Read also: Morocco and South Africa: Twisting Toward a Common Ground Tags: Jacob ZumaMorocco and South Africa