US Lauds Morocco’s Efforts to Advance Women’s Empowerment

Students attend a class at Mohammed VI Institute for training Imams in Rabat, Morocco April 16, 2019. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal
Students attend a class at Mohammed VI Institute for training Imams in Rabat, Morocco April 16, 2019. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal
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US Lauds Morocco’s Efforts to Advance Women’s Empowerment

Students attend a class at Mohammed VI Institute for training Imams in Rabat, Morocco April 16, 2019. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal
Students attend a class at Mohammed VI Institute for training Imams in Rabat, Morocco April 16, 2019. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal

The United States and Morocco have announced that they would continue their longstanding partnership to further shared objectives.

“Morocco and the United States agreed to work closely together to enhance their strategic partnership to advance women's economic empowerment and entrepreneurship,” said a joint statement following a three-day official visit to Morocco by the US president’s daughter, Ivanka Trump.

The statement said that she commended Morocco’s reform process, especially on the issue of advancing women’s rights and promoting their economic empowerment through the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative (W-GDP).

It added that the US and Morocco “reiterate their support for legal reforms to advance women's ability to work in the same jobs and sectors as men, and to manage land in the same way as men.”

The US delegation reiterated Washington’s “appreciation to the leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI on critical issues such as peace and security in the Middle East, as well as to ensure peace, stability and development for Africa.”



Israeli Strike Wounds a Hospital Chief in Besieged Northern Gaza, Health Officials Say

A Palestinian man gestures toward ambulances transporting victims of Israeli bombing to the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, on November 23, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
A Palestinian man gestures toward ambulances transporting victims of Israeli bombing to the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, on November 23, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
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Israeli Strike Wounds a Hospital Chief in Besieged Northern Gaza, Health Officials Say

A Palestinian man gestures toward ambulances transporting victims of Israeli bombing to the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, on November 23, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
A Palestinian man gestures toward ambulances transporting victims of Israeli bombing to the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, on November 23, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

An Israeli strike has wounded the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, one of the few hospitals still partially operating in the northernmost part of Gaza, local and international health officials said.

Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya was in his office when it was hit by an Israeli quadcopter drone on Sunday, according to the humanitarian organization MedGlobal.

The doctor was wounded by shrapnel in his thigh and back, causing serious bleeding that requires surgical care, the aid group said. Abu Safiya is the lead physician in Gaza for MedGlobal, which has worked in Gaza since 2018.

Dr. Munir al-Boursh, director general of Gaza's Health Ministry, posted a video to social media on Monday showing Abu Safiya limping and leaning on a crutch while speaking to patients inside the hospital.

The Israeli military said it was unaware of a strike on the grounds of Kamal Adwan Hospital and said it does its utmost to avoid harming civilians.

During the past month, Kamal Adwan Hospital has been hit several times, was put under siege and was raided by Israeli troops, who are waging a heavy offensive in the nearby Jabaliya refugee camp and towns of Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya. The Israeli military says it detained Hamas fighters hiding in the hospital, a claim its staff denies.

Abu Safiya said Israeli strikes on the hospital last week wounded nine medical staff and damaged the generator and oxygen systems. He said the hospital was treating 85 wounded, 14 children in the pediatric ward and four newborns in the neonatal unit.

Israel also denied knowledge of conducting any strikes on in the area of the hospital at that time.