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Morocco Sets Roadmap for Media during Coronavirus Crisis

A general view of Cadablanca, Morocco. (AFP)
A general view of Cadablanca, Morocco. (AFP)
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Morocco Sets Roadmap for Media during Coronavirus Crisis

A general view of Cadablanca, Morocco. (AFP)
A general view of Cadablanca, Morocco. (AFP)

Morocco’s High Authority for Audiovisual Communication (HACA) has urged audio-visual operators to avoid naming people who have been infected with coronavirus. It said disrespecting their personal space and information and degrading them shall be avoided.

It also recommended that radio and television be keen to continue hosting cultural and entertainment programs, in addition to the exceptional programs assigned for the coronavirus crisis.

The HACA issued a statement indicating that it approved on Friday a report on the aspects and characteristics of the media efforts in line with the national mobilization to face the coronavirus pandemic.

It said Moroccan TV and radio services have changed their programs' schedule and altered their shows’ content to accommodate the requirements of the health emergency.

The report, which was circulated at all audio-visual operators in the country, provided also a number of proposals, aimed at enhancing vigilance efforts at the level of media support for various aspects and repercussions of this crisis.

Among the major proposals presented by the HACA are “to avoid disclosing the identity of persons suspected of being infected with the new COVID-19 and ensure that their dignity is preserved and their private life is protected.”

It also urged audio-visual operators to “avoid linking specific cities and neighborhoods to the increase in the number of people infected with coronavirus.”

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Business

OPEC+ Agrees in Principle on Theoretical Oil Output Hike amid Iran War Paralysis

FILE PHOTO: A model of an oil pump is seen in front of the OPEC logo in this illustration taken January 9, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A model of an oil pump is seen in front of the OPEC logo in this illustration taken January 9, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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OPEC+ Agrees in Principle on Theoretical Oil Output Hike amid Iran War Paralysis

FILE PHOTO: A model of an oil pump is seen in front of the OPEC logo in this illustration taken January 9, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A model of an oil pump is seen in front of the OPEC logo in this illustration taken January 9, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

OPEC+ has agreed in principle to raise its oil output quotas by 206,000 barrels per day for May, three sources with knowledge of the group's talks said ahead of its meeting later on Sunday, a rise that will largely exist on paper as its key members are unable to raise production due to the US-Israeli war with Iran.

The war has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz - the world's most important oil route - since the end of February and cut exports from OPEC+ members.
Some group members such as Russia are unable to increase output due to Western sanctions and damage to infrastructure inflicted during the war with Ukraine.

Inside the Gulf, damage to infrastructure from missile and drone attacks has also been severe. Several Gulf officials have said it would take months to resume normal operations and reach production targets even if the war stopped and Hormuz reopened immediately, according to Reuters.
Iran on Saturday said Iraq was exempt from any restrictions to transit the vital route, and shipping data on Sunday showed a tanker loaded with Iraqi crude passing through the strait. Still, it remains to be seen if more vessels will take the risk involved, a source close to the issue said.

Sunday's OPEC+ talks are set to start at around 1300 GMT with a gathering of ministers called the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee, which does not decide on output policy.

After this, eight members of OPEC+ hold separate talks having agreed in principle to raise output quotas by 206,000 bpd for May, the three sources said. This would be the same as the increase decided for April at their last meeting held on March 1, just as the war began to disrupt oil flows. A month later, the largest oil supply disruption on record is estimated to have removed as many as 12 to 15 million bpd or up to 15% of global supply. Crude prices have soared to a four-year high close to $120 a barrel. Oil prices could spike above $150 - an all-time high - if flows via Hormuz remain disrupted into mid-May, JPMorgan said on Thursday. A quota increase will have little immediate impact on supply but would signal readiness to raise output once Hormuz reopens, OPEC+ sources have said. Consultancy Energy Aspects called the increase "academic" as long as disruptions in the strait persist.

Arab World

Lebanese Army Says Soldier Killed in Israeli Attack in Southern Lebanon

A Lebanese army soldier inspects the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted their checkpoint in Aamriyeh, south of the coastal city of Tyre, on March 30, 2026. (Photo by KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)
A Lebanese army soldier inspects the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted their checkpoint in Aamriyeh, south of the coastal city of Tyre, on March 30, 2026. (Photo by KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)
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Lebanese Army Says Soldier Killed in Israeli Attack in Southern Lebanon

A Lebanese army soldier inspects the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted their checkpoint in Aamriyeh, south of the coastal city of Tyre, on March 30, 2026. (Photo by KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)
A Lebanese army soldier inspects the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted their checkpoint in Aamriyeh, south of the coastal city of Tyre, on March 30, 2026. (Photo by KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)

The Lebanese army said on Sunday that a soldier had been killed in an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon.

Meanwhile, an Israeli strike hit south Beirut on Sunday, Lebanese state media reported, with a medical source telling AFP it made impact about 100 metres away from a public hospital.

The strike hit Beirut's Jnah neighborhood near Rafik Hariri University Hospital, the largest public medical facility in the country.

Israel's military earlier warned it was carrying out strikes on Beirut.

Gulf

Saudi Arabia Condemns Riots Targeting UAE Embassy in Damascus

Saudi Arabia called for the protection of diplomatic missions. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia called for the protection of diplomatic missions. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Condemns Riots Targeting UAE Embassy in Damascus

Saudi Arabia called for the protection of diplomatic missions. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia called for the protection of diplomatic missions. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia condemned on Sunday the riots, assaults, and attempted vandalism that targeted the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates and the residence of its head of mission in Damascus.

A Foreign Ministry statement said the Kingdom also slammed the “unacceptable offenses directed at the national symbols of the brotherly UAE.”

The ministry stressed the Kingdom’s “rejection of these attacks and all forms of violence against diplomats, stressing the need to ensure the protection of diplomats and diplomatic missions in line with relevant international laws and conventions.”

Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Jasem Albudaiwi also slammed the attack against the UAE embassy in Damascus, urging Syrian authorities to hold those responsible to account.