Morocco’s FM: Joining AU’s Peace and Security Council Is Chance to Block Exploitation

Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita - Press Photo
Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita - Press Photo
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Morocco’s FM: Joining AU’s Peace and Security Council Is Chance to Block Exploitation

Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita - Press Photo
Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita - Press Photo

The African Union’s Peace and Security Council on Friday named Morocco to become one of its official members.

Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita described the Peace and Security Council as a pivotal organ of the African Union.

After returning to the AU a year ago, joining the council was one of the major objectives of Moroccan diplomacy, Bourita told Asharq Al-Awsat on Friday.

Morocco, which was North Africa’s sole candidate (Algeria, currently occupying the seat, had announced, earlier this month, that it would not run for renewal), was elected with 39 voices in favor and 16 abstentions, more than the 3/2 needed to secure the regional seat in AU’s Peace and Security Council.

The Peace and Security Council is AU’s body in charge of promoting “peace, security, and stability in Africa.”

Today’s election grants Morocco a two-year mandate (2018-2020), which is renewable should the Kingdom decide to run again in 2020.

"Being a member in this body will aid in blocking all maneuvers and confronting all strategies that for years wished to exploit this body and use it in the service of agendas known to some parties," Bourita added.

On the other hand, Bourita told Asharq Al-Awsat that the agenda of the AU summit in Addis Ababa includes a report to be submitted by Morocco’s King Mohammed VI to African leaders on the issue of migration. The Moroccan monarch will be represented at the Addis Ababa summit by Prime Minister Saadeddine Othmani.

"Morocco, in addition to its strong presence in peacekeeping operations, is strongly involved in conflict resolution and preventive diplomacy through the King's communications delegations and humanitarian operations, as well as contributing to the development of African countries,” Bourita said.

“All these factors weighed in on its election for membership of the Peace and Security Council, despite all the apparent attempts to block this nomination.”

"Some countries tried to block Morocco’s election, but its fate was a failure because the credibility of the kingdom and the recognition of the work of His Majesty the King were dominant," Bourita said.



52 Palestinians Including Children Killed in Israeli Airstrikes in Gaza

Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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52 Palestinians Including Children Killed in Israeli Airstrikes in Gaza

Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Israeli airstrikes killed at least 28 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, including four children, hospital officials said Saturday. Also, 24 others were fatally shot on their way to aid distribution sites.

The children and two women were among at least 13 people who were killed in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, after Israeli airstrikes pounded the area starting late Friday, officials in Al-Aqsa Martyr's Hospital said. Another four people were killed in strikes near a fuel station, and 15 others died in Israeli airstrikes in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, according to Nasser Hospital.

The Israeli military said in a statement that over the past 48 hours, troops struck approximately 250 targets in the Gaza Strip, including militants, booby-trapped structures, weapons storage facilities, anti-tank missile launch posts, sniper posts, tunnels and additional Hamas infrastructure sites. The military did not immediately respond to The Associated Press' request for comment on the civilian deaths.

The Hamas-led group killed some 1,200 people in their Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and abducted 251. They still hold 50 hostages, less than half of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s offensive has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, which is under Gaza’s Hamas-run government, doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count. The UN and other international organizations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties.

US President Donald Trump has said that he is closing in on another ceasefire agreement that would see more hostages released and potentially wind down the war. But after two days of talks this week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu there were no signs of a breakthrough.