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August 13, 2026

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Gianni Infantino, President of FIFA, speaks to the media during a FIFA World Cup 2026 Opening Press Conference at Mexico City Stadium on June 10, 2026 in Mexico City, Mexico.

Analysis

FIFA in turmoil: Middle East takes center stage as Infantino fights to stay in power

Amid the backlash to FIFA President Gianni Infantino's controversial investment plan, upcoming World Cup hosts Morocco and Saudi Arabia have starring roles in the drama.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Ceuta

Explainer

Estimated 60,000 migrants cross from Morocco into Spanish territory: What we know

The influx of asylum seekers has left Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez grappling with the country’s worst migration crisis in years.

Latest News

Explainer

France-Morocco ties get an energy jolt as historic heatwaves pressure Europe

Director of European Affairs and Customs at La Poste Groupe Christelle Defaye-Geneste (L) and Morocco's Minister of Industry and Trade Ryad Mezzour (R) sign agreements between La Poste Groupe and Barid Al-Maghrib, alongside France's Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu (C-L) and his Moroccan counterpart, Aziz Akhannouch, during a meeting in Rabat on July 16, 2026.

France ends Morocco’s World Cup run as last Arab and African team standing

EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 30: Kylian Mbappe #10 of France celebrates scoring his team's third goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round Of 32 match between France and Sweden at New York New Jersey Stadium on June 30, 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

Naima Morelli

In Rome, reporting on Middle East culture

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

Erdogan goes after Morocco’s Gulenists

Several Turks affiliated with the Gulen movement have been arrested in Morocco, raising questions about the kingdom’s independence in its decisions.

Moroccan activist and the leader of "Hirak" Nasser Zefzafi gives a speech during a demonstration against injustice and corruption in the northern town of Al-Hoceima, Morocco, May 18, 2017. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal - RC1A255148A0

In Morocco, press freedom shrinks with Hirak protests

As part of the Moroccan authorities' efforts to silence the Hirak protest movement, journalists are facing pressure and repression, prompting questions about their objectivity and the freedom of the press.

An activist carrying a Berber flag walks on a hilltop above a silver mine, where dozens of poor and unemployed young villagers have been holding a permanent sit-in since 2011, near the town of Imider, southeastern Morocco, August 31, 2015. They have cut off the flow of water from a well that supplies one of the biggest silver mines in Africa. Protesters want to make the company hire more locals and reconsider its water and environmental policies. Picture taken August 31, 2015. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal - RTX1

Sit-in in Morocco’s south still going strong as it enters its seventh year

After six years of an uninterrupted sit-in, the inhabitants of Imider in southeast Morocco march to reaffirm their demands.

Protesters throw stones towards riot police during a demonstrating against alleged corruption in the provincial town of Imzouren, Morocco, June 2, 2017. REUTERS/Youssef Boudla - RTX38R6V

Protests continue in Morocco despite crackdown

Hirak, a protest movement active in Morocco’s marginalized Rif region, is still going strong despite brutal police repression and arrests.

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 04: Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), participates in a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, November 4, 2015 in Washington, DC. The committee heard testimony from State Department√äofficials on√äU.S. policy after Russia's escalation in Syria. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

House rejects Trump’s Middle East aid cuts

The House spending bill calls for far more assistance to North Africa.

Protesters from Rif movement Al-Hirak Al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement" chant during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in Morocco's northern town of Imzouren in the early hours of June 11, 2017.
Demonstrators have rallied nightly in Al-Hoceima and the nearby town of Imzouren since the arrest of Al-Hirak leader Nasser Zefzafi on May 29 and the subsequent arrests of dozens more. / AFP PHOTO / FADEL SENNA (Photo credit should read FADEL SENNA/AFP/Getty Images)

Protests grow over police actions in Morocco

The Moroccan government promotes the country as a model for stability in the region, but its failure to calm months of protests could have serious consequences.

A displaced elderly Iraqi man who just fled his home arrives on military humvee at Sepcial forces base , as Iraqi forces battle with Islamic State militants, in western Mosul, Iraq February 27, 2017. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra - RTS10M3H

Trump budget slashes Middle East aid

The State Department is seeking deep cuts to military and economic assistance for Arab states.

Morocco cracks down on fighters returning from IS

The Moroccan authorities are deploying all efforts to curb the phenomenon of former Islamic State fighters returning to their home country by arresting them.

Algerian city employees install Algerian flags and President's Abdelaziz Bouteflika poster on the streets ahead of the Parliamentary election in Algiers, Algeria April 26,2017.Picture taken 26 April 2017. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina - RTS14O6W

Russia keeping a close eye on Algeria

Algeria’s new legislature, facing tough economic times domestically, needs to make gains in foreign policy to regain citizens’ trust — something Russia might be able to facilitate.

Abdelilah Benkirane, secretary-general of Morocco's Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) speaks during a new conference at the party's headquarters in Rabat, Morocco early October 8, 2016. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal - RTSRB02

Morocco finally gets new government, but at what cost?

The announcement of a new Cabinet in Morocco after months of difficulty revealed that the Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) may have had to pay a heavy price for compromise.

Polisario Front soldiers take part in a parade for the 35th anniversary celebrations of their independence movement for Western Sahara from Morocco, in Tifariti, southwestern Algeria February 27, 2011. REUTERS/Juan Medina (ALGERIA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR2J6W4

How Polisario Front hopes to partner with Russia in Western Sahara

Polisario Front officials in Western Sahara are working to enlist Russia as an ally at the United Nations Security Council in their fight for independence, as they believe both sides have many shared interests.

Could foreign partners help revive ailing Arab film industry?

The Sharm el-Sheikh Arab and European Film Festival started a debate through a seminar on joint film projects between the Arab world and Europe, over the feasibility of international co-productions.