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June 22, 2026

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Achraf Hakimi #2 of Morocco shoots and misses a chance against Gabriel Magalhaes #3 of Brazil during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group C match between Brazil and Morocco at New York New Jersey Stadium on June 13, 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Culture

Morocco, Egypt impress with notable draws despite winless World Cup start for Mideast teams

Several teams from the Middle East and North Africa could advance to the knockout stage under the new format, and Morocco climbed in the rankings despite a tie in its opener.

Morocco's midfielder Azzedine Ounahi celebrates scoring with teammates during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group E African qualification football match between Morocco and Niger at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex in Rabat on September 5, 2025. (Photo by Abdel Majid BZIOUAT / AFP)

Culture

10 MENA teams at 2026 World Cup: Morocco eyes title, Iran faces visa hurdles

Jordan is competing in its first World Cup, while Iraq is making only its second appearance, as teams from the region seek to advance against European and Latin American powerhouses.

Crops of wheat and barley in Terbol village on May 10, 2022, in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

Home to many of the world's largest wheat importers, the Middle East and North Africa face acute food security risks as the US-Israel-Iran war disrupts global fertilizer flows and pushes up prices.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Archaeologists at the entrance of the Contrebandiers (Smugglers) Cave, some 12 miles from the Moroccan capital, Rabat, Sept. 18, 2021.

Culture

Fossil discovery repositions Morocco at center of human evolution 800,000 years ago

Once overlooked, Morocco has emerged as a focal point of human prehistory, with new discoveries and a landmark report reshaping what we know about our species’ evolution.

Latest News

Storm Leonardo displaces 140,000 as heavy floods hit northern Morocco

An emergency vehicle drives through flood waters as residents are evacuated and relocated to other towns as preventive and emergency evacuations are carried out to move residents living near flood-prone areas following the weather alert and the rise in the water level of the Loukkos River, with flooding expected in the coming days, in Ksar El Kebir on Feb. 1, 2026.

From Egypt to Lebanon: What’s at stake for regional states on Trump’s visa ban list?

Culture

Morocco’s next generation of writers fights for a place on the shelf

A customer browses books at a bookshop in the Moroccan capital Rabat on August 9, 2018. On the main arteries of old Rabat, dozens of itinerant booksellers offer books in French, Arabic, and sometimes in English, up to ten times cheaper than their originals. Despite being prohibited, the pirated-books market is largely tolerated in cities across the North African kingdom. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP) (Photo by FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images)

Naima Morelli

In Rome, reporting on Middle East culture

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

Children sit in a classroom at a school in the Moroccan village of Taghzirt, in el-Haouz province in the High Atlas Mountains south of the capital of Marrakech, on March 4, 2016.
When using well-known search engines, one can find very few information about Taghzirt village. And while tourists from all around the world enjoy the sun warm days and the snow-covered view of the nearby mountains from Marrakesh, hundreds of villagers suffer from the harshness of winter and isolation, due to the state of the roads

Inside Morocco’s digital divide: girls fighting for education in lockdown

While the internet has kept many going through coronavirus lockdowns, the digital divide could mean that many Moroccan students will fall behind.

Moroccan activist calls for revolution of ideas

While female entrepreneurship is steadily increasing in Morocco, cultural barriers stand in the way of women achieving their full economic potential.

Why Turkey is trying to improve its profile in the Maghreb

In parallel with its military activities in Libya and rising profile in Africa, Ankara moves to strengthen its geostrategic and geo-economic ties with Maghreb countries.

Morocco targeted journalist with Israeli spyware, says Amnesty International

The London-based rights group Amnesty International says Omar Radi’s phone was subjected to a series of attacks.

Secret operation brings Israelis stranded in Morocco back home

In a complicated operation, Israelis stuck in Morocco because of the coronavirus were finally brought home.

United Arab Emirates

COVID-19 offers new opportunities for Israel-Arab relations

In secret diplomatic ties or in open posts on social media, Israel reaches out to Arab neighbors battling with the coronavirus.

United Arab Emirates

Intel: US plans anti-ship missile sale for Morocco

Congress was notified today of US plans for a $62 million sale of anti-ship missiles for Morocco that would be launched from F-16 aircraft.

Morocco, Algeria face off at UN over Western Sahara

The Polisario Front is disappointed over the lack of interest from the international community in the group's four-decade-long battle for self-determination and an independent state.

A security man checks the temperature of a customer, as he enters the supermarket before curfew , following the outbreak of coronavirus, in Baghdad, Iraq March 17, 2020. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily - RC2RLF917B9G

Intel: US touts nearly $40 million in coronavirus aid to Middle East

The United States today touted nearly $40 million in aid to the Middle East and North Africa as part of a $274 million emergency health and humanitarian assistance package to help afflicted countries deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

North Africa braces for coronavirus

It remains unclear how the coronavirus outbreak will affect the economies and social fabric of North African countries.

RABAT, MOROCCO - FEBRUARY 13: King Mohammed VI of Morocco attends the signing of bilateral agreements at the Agdal Royal Palace on February 13, 2019 in Rabat, Morocco. The Spanish Royals are on a two day visit to Morocco. (Photo by Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images)

Morocco shows support for Egypt in conflict with Ethiopia over Nile Dam

Although Moroccan King Mohammed VI's visit to Egypt had been postponed more than five times without clear reasons, a silent alliance between Egypt and Morocco may have been formed.

Moroccans wave the Palestinian flag during a demonstration against the US Middle East peace plan in the capital Rabat on February 9, 2020. - Morocco has warming but quiet relations with Israel, although they do not enjoy formal diplomatic ties. Israel and Morocco opened "liaison" offices in each other's countries in the mid-1990s but Rabat closed them after an escalation of Palestinian-Israeli violence in 2000. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP) (Photo by FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images)

Morocco’s balancing act on Israel and Palestine

Moroccans protest against the "deal of the century" and want the government, which recently took possession of Israeli spy drones, to do more to aid the Palestinian cause.