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City Name

Rabat

Morocco

October 16, 2026

Rabat 8:07 am

19°C

Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri, Morocco's newly appointed head of government

Culture

Who is Fatima El Mansouri, Morocco’s first woman prime minister?

Her appointment marks the first time a woman has served as Morocco’s head of government and the second time a woman has held the position in the Arab world.

Royal Air Maroc Boeing 787-9 'Dreamliner' aircraft

Israel, Morocco agree to exchange ambassadors, open embassies

The move will mark the first time Morocco and Israel have exchanged ambassadors.

UDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

Fueled by regional rivalries, Algeria severs diplomatic ties with UAE

Algiers accused Abu Dhabi of increasingly “provocative and hostile actions” after years of friction over Morocco, Western Sahara and competing regional interests.

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

Latest News

Explainer

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

Ceuta

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.

Naima Morelli

In Rome, reporting on Middle East culture

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

Sahrawis watch a mine explode during a demonstration organised by officials from the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) to show the hazards of mined territory near Tifariti, in the Sahara desert in southwestern Algeria, February 28, 2011. Over 150,000 Sahrawis live in several refugee camps dispersed in the Algerian desert 35 years after Morocco annexed the disputed territory of Western Sahara. REUTERS/Juan Medina (ALGERIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR2J9CS

Why Sahrawis see more hope in war than in peace

Sahrawi leaders are growing ever-more impatient — and becoming more vocal about it — as little has been accomplished in the 25 years they have waited peacefully for change.

A woman (L) leaves a booth before casting her ballot at a polling station in the town of Tifelt, east of Rabat, Morocco September 4, 2015. Morocco's ruling Islamist party on Friday faced a major test of its dominance as polls opened for local elections for which most opposition parties have campaigned on anti-corruption platforms and against privileges for the elite. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTX1R65C

Democracy in Morocco will require collective effort

Morocco’s deep state is worming its way into pre-election machinations.

Sahrawi women hold Polisario Front's flags during a ceremony to mark 40 years after the Front proclaimed the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) in the disputed territory of Western Sahara on February 27, 2016 at the Sahrawi refugee camp of Dakhla which lies 170 km to the southeast of the Algerian city of Tindouf.
SADR was declared in 1976 by the Polisario Front -- a rebel movement that wants independence for Western Sahara -- which fought a guerrilla war against Rabat's forces before a ceasefire in 19

Sahrawi protesters recount recent abuses

The people of Western Sahara have been seeking independence for decades and still suffer for their efforts.

Indigenous Sahrawi girls play on an improvised see-saw at a refugee camp of Boudjdour in Tindouf, southern Algeria March 3, 2016. The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to visit the Sahrawi refugees in south-west Algeria's Tindouf region. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTS96QU

Trips offer respite to Sahrawi refugee children

Sahrawi children live in difficult conditions year-round, with the exception of those children lucky enough to take "peace vacations" in Spain.

Morocco's Abdalaati Iguider (front) finishes first in his men's 1500m semi-final during the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium August 5, 2012. REUTERS/David Gray (BRITAIN - Tags: OLYMPICS SPORT ATHLETICS) - RTR367XZ

Morocco hoping for Olympic gold in boxing, track and field

Morocco is sending a number of exceptional athletes to the Rio Olympics, namely, middle-distance runner Abdalaati Iguider, boxer Mohammed Rabii and equestrian jumper Abdelkebir Ouaddar.

US Secretary of State John Kerry and Moroccan Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar (L) speak to the media prior to meetings at the Department of State in Washington, DC, February 18, 2016. / AFP / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

Lobbying 2016: Morocco tightens grip on disputed Sahara

A general view shows Chad's President Idriss Deby addressing delegates during the 26th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU) at the AU headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, January 31, 2016. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri - RTX24TF2

Why Morocco really wants back in the African Union

The king of Morocco's recent declaration that his country wants to return to the African Union after a 32-year absence appears to be a political maneuver to gain ground in the Western Sahara dispute.

A picture taken on May 13, 2013 shows facilities of the factory of the National Moroccan phosphates company (OCP/public) in Marca, near Laayoune, the capial of Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara. As a global leader in the market for phosphate and its derivatives, OCP has been a key player in the international market since its founding in 1920, the worlds largest exporter of phosphate rock and phosphoric acid and one of the worlds largest fertilizer producers. AFP PHOTOS/FADEL SENNA (Photo credit s

Sahrawis, EU in standoff over Moroccan trade agreement

The Polisario Front criticizes the EU’s farm trade agreement with Morocco because it also applies to the disputed territory of the Western Sahara; by bringing this agreement before the EU’s highest court, the Polisario Front puts its claim for independence back on the agenda.

An indigenous Sahrawi woman walks at a refugee camp of Boudjdour in Tindouf, southern Algeria March 3, 2016. In refugee camps near the town of Tindouf in arid southern Algeria, conditions are hard for indigenous Sahrawi residents. Residents use car batteries for electricity at night and depend on humanitarian aid to get by. The five camps near Tindouf are home to an estimated 165,000 Sahrawi refugees from the disputed region of Western Sahara, according to the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR. REUTERS/Zo

Algeria rips House appropriators over Sahara coercion

Algiers is furious at pro-Moroccan language in the annual foreign aid bill.

Brahim Ghali (C), new secretary general of Polisario Front and president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), walks at the Sahrawi refugee camp of Dakhla, southeast of the Algerian city of Tindouf, July 9, 2016. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina? - RTSH3RO

Western Sahara's Polisario Front elects leader

The Sahrawi people have a new chief and a persistent determination to establish recognition from Morocco, one way or the other.

Indigenous Sahrawi women walk through Al Smara desert refugee camp in Tindouf, southern Algeria March 4, 2016. In refugee camps near the town of Tindouf in arid southern Algeria, conditions are hard for indigenous Sahrawi residents. Residents use car batteries for electricity at night and depend on humanitarian aid to get by. The five camps near Tindouf are home to an estimated 165,000 Sahrawi refugees from the disputed region of Western Sahara, according to the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR. REUTERS/

Why Sahrawi refugees don't count on census to provide relief

Some international parties are pushing for an independent census regarding the number of Sahrawi refugees in Algeria, but some in the camps say they have reasons to be opposed.

What's next in Western Sahara dispute after death of Polisario leader?

Late Polisario Front leader Mohamed Abdelaziz kept the dispute over Western Sahara peaceful, but a fruitless, 25-year-long cease-fire with Morocco has young Sahrawis impatient.