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

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Rabat

Morocco

August 13, 2026

Rabat 12:05 am

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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

World Cup

Culture

Iran, Saudi, other MidEast teams warm up in Qatar as World Cup approaches

Iran is looking to advance to the second round for the first time ever, but the team is mired in controversy over the protests in the country while host Qatar itself is facing criticism at home.

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

Morocco’s transition to renewable energies to accelerate amid high hydrocarbons prices

Francisco Serrano

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

A woman walks over cracked earth at al-Massira dam in Ouled Essi Masseoud village, some 140 kilometres (85 miles) south from Morocco's economic capital Casablanca, on August 8, 2022 amidst the country's worst drought in at least four decades. - Residents of Morocco's Ouled Essi Masseoud village are suffering from a series of successive droughts, prompting them to rely solely on sporadic supplies in public fountains and from private wells. The situation is critical, given the village's position in the agricu

Water stress to remain major driver of social instability, barrier to economic growth in Maghreb

Francisco Serrano

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

Moroccans raise placards as they gather in front of parliament in the capital Rabat to protest against rising prices, on February 20, 2022. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Inflation in Maghreb will continue to undercut real wages and feed social discontent

Francisco Serrano

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

Morocco refinery

Calls rise to reactivate Morocco’s only refinery as oil prices soar

Activists and opposition parties are calling for Morocco’s SAMIR oil plant to be brought back online after a seven-year hiatus to alleviate fossil fuel import pressure and enhance energy sovereignty.

An aerial view of the solar mirrors at the Noor 1 Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plant, some 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) outside the central Moroccan town of Ouarzazate.

Morocco to ramp up green hydrogen production

While the industry is still in its infancy, the need to develop sustainable energy sources is becoming more pressing for the country.

Isabel Infantes/Getty Images

Explainer: Algeria-Spain gas controversy

The disagreement relates to both countries' troubled history with Morocco over the Western Sahara territory.

Morocco solar

Emirati firm to build solar power plants in Morocco

Morocco is heavily dependent on imports for its energy needs, and is working to increase its use of renewable sources.

A Moroccan passes by an advertising billboard for a sheep purchase loan ahead of Aid el-Kebir holiday on Nov. 26, 2009, in Rabat.

OPEC loans $100 million to Morocco to promote financial inclusivity

Financial technology (fintech) is expanding across the Middle East and enabling more people to use financial tools. But some cultural barriers remain.

FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images

US concerned after Moroccan court upholds journalist’s sentence

The State Department said it was "concerned with the judicial process" that led to Omar Radi's six-year sentence.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomes Morocco's Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita (L) to address the media at the State Department in Washington, DC, on Nov. 22, 2021.

Morocco acquires Israeli anti-drone air defense system

Israel's defense minister is expected in Rabat on Wednesday to finalize further deals.

Israeli Minister of Defense Benny Gantz speaks at Jerusalem Post's annual conference, Jerusalem, Oct. 12, 2021.

Israeli defense minister to visit Morocco in first since normalization

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz is expected to sign security cooperation agreements with his Moroccan counterpart, Abdellatif Loudiyi.