Morocco - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

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Rabat

Morocco

August 12, 2026

Rabat 10:20 pm

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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

Valentina Cernoia of Italy competes for the ball with Fatima Gharbi of Morocco during the Women´s International Friendly match between Italy and Morocco at Stadio Paolo Mazza on July 01, 2023 in Ferrara, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

Culture

Morocco chases history at FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia

The Moroccan women’s team is the first team from the Arab world to qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Their success follows a historic run by the Moroccan men’s team at last year’s World Cup in Qatar.

Morocco's Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita poses for a photo.

Morocco king invites Israel’s Netanyahu for visit following Western Sahara recognition

Only two days after Israel recognized Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, King Mohammed VI invited Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a visit.

Israeli and Moroccan flags are pictured during an official ceremony in Israel's Mediterranean coastal city of Tel Aviv, on September 13, 2022. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel recognizes Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara

The move follows the establishment of full diplomatic relations between Israel and Morocco in 2020 as part of the US-brokered Abraham Accords.

Alstrom train

France’s Alstom to build second rail plant in Morocco

The company has previously made tramway vehicles in Rabat and Casablanca as well as high speed trains that operate between Casablanca and Tangier.

This picture taken on April 18, 2023 shows the Green Hydrogen Plant built by Spanish company Iberdrola in Puertollano.

Analysis

Morocco's agricultural independence to get boost from green ammonia plant

The project by the state-owned company in Tarfaya will help the North African country meet the domestic demand for the compound, which is a crucial ingredient in nitrate fertilizers.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

A Moroccan farmer walks past solar panels that are connected to a generator which feeds a pump extracting water from underground in Tafoughalt, a little village deep in the mountains of Morocco's eastern Berkane province, on October 31, 2016. As the Cop22 gets underway in Marrakesh, negotiators are thrashing out the details of a landmark global agreement designed to stave off disastrous climate change, but in Tafoughalt that impact is being felt already. Rising temperatures are among the factors making the

How North Africa’s renewable energy regulations can boost FDI

Foreign investors and institutions are showing serious interest in North Africa’s renewable energy industry, but regulations remain key.

This photograph taken on June 21, 2023, shows an Airbus A321 XLR airplane.

Analysis

More Middle East aircraft orders expected after quiet Paris Air Show

The IBA industry consultancy firm had expected an order from Turkish Airlines, but the carrier delayed its plans at the last minute by two months.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images

Morocco cancels Negev summit with Israel over settlement expansion

The Israeli government's decision to place settlement construction authorization in the hands of Finance Minister and Deputy Defense Minister Bezalel Smotrich left Morocco with little choice but to cancel the Negev Forum meeting.

Cars queue before embarking on ferries bound for Tangier at the Algeciras port on July 27, 2019. - Thousands of Moroccan nationals working and living in Europe pass through the Strait of Gibraltar as they return to spend summer holidays in Morocco. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP) (Photo credit should read JORGE GUERRERO/AFP via Getty Images)

Morocco to accelerate transition to EV manufacturing

The long-term prospects for auto manufacturing in the country will hinge on an effective transition into the manufacturing of electric cars.

Francisco Serrano

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

Israel Morocco

Israeli parliament speaker Amir Ohana pays first visit to Morocco

As the son of Moroccan-born parents, Knesset speaker Amir Ohana is especially moved to visit his family's homeland.

A farmer inspects plants in a cannabis field in the village of Azila in Morocco's Ketama region at the foot of the marginalised and underdeveloped mountainous region of Rif on September 16, 2022. - High in the hills of northern Morocco, vast cannabis fields are ready for harvest, but farmers complain that a government plan to market the crop legally is a slow burner. The marginalised region has long been a major source of illicit hashish smuggled to Europe while Moroccan authorities, wary of social unrest,

Morocco's share in formal cannabis market to remain minimal despite reforms

There are questions as to whether local dynamics in the cannabis-growing region and the prospect of international competition could stunt the government’s attempts to make Morocco a powerhouse for the export of legal cannabis.

Harry Clynch

In London, reporting on Middle East economics

Wheat in Morocco

Drought threatens Morocco's bread basket economy: World Bank

Last year, the Maghreb experienced one of its worst droughts in decade, causing a 60% decline in Moroccan cereal production.