Morocco’s Interior Ministry: Risk of Coronavirus Outbreak Still Exists

Closed shop in Casablanca, Morocco, to prevent the spread of COVID-19 (AFP)
Closed shop in Casablanca, Morocco, to prevent the spread of COVID-19 (AFP)
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Morocco’s Interior Ministry: Risk of Coronavirus Outbreak Still Exists

Closed shop in Casablanca, Morocco, to prevent the spread of COVID-19 (AFP)
Closed shop in Casablanca, Morocco, to prevent the spread of COVID-19 (AFP)

Moroccan Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit said on Tuesday that allowing some economic activities to resume work does not mean lifting the state of emergency or ending quarantine.

He pointed to the need to continue adhering to the precautionary measures that have been approved at the beginning of the crisis.

Speaking during the plenary session in the country’s House of Councillors on the Ministry’s measure to face the coronavirus pandemic after lifting quarantine, Laftit said the risk of coronavirus outbreak still exists.

Any decision regarding quarantine will not be taken before June 11, he stressed, affirming that the decision will be taken following a very careful assessment of the epidemiological situation by the health authorities.

The Minister noted that significant progress has been made in controlling the virus, but significant negative challenges imposed by the new economic and social situations must be faced.

He reviewed the various measures taken by the ministry since declaring the state of emergency.

“The success of the measures taken by Moroccan authorities has disturbed some of the bodies that followed an opportunistic approach aimed at underestimating the efforts made and promoting nihilistic rhetoric to spread frustration.”

He cited the great number of false news circulated, prompting judicial prosecutions against violators, as this news “affects the community’s security and stability.”

Meanwhile, a total of 1,469 remote sessions were held by Kingdom’s various courts between April 27 and May 29, said the Higher Council of the Judiciary (CSPJ).

During this period, 22,268 cases were reviewed and 9,035 cases were closed.

According to the CSPJ, 24,926 detainees benefited from remote trials to spare them all the health risks in this exceptional situation, highlighting the significant results and the positive indicators noted during the first month of implementing this process.

It expressed pride in the serious and responsible involvement of all judicial authorities, institutions and professionals, in light of the harmonious cooperation to make this initiative a success.

The Council considered that these important and promising results have many positive indications at the various legal and organizational levels.



UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
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UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)

The UN rights chief on Tuesday voiced concern about the escalation of hostilities in Lebanon, where his office said nearly 100 people had been reported killed by Israeli airstrikes in recent days, including women, children and medics.

Israel has been locked in fighting with Lebanese armed group Hezbollah since Oct. 2023, and fighting has escalated dramatically since late September of this year.

"UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk is gravely concerned by the escalation in Lebanon with at least 97 people reportedly killed in Israeli airstrikes between the 22nd and 24th of November," Jeremy Laurence, a spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights, told a Geneva press briefing.

He said that at least seven paramedics had been reported killed in three Israeli strikes in the south of Lebanon on Nov. 22-23, adding to 226 healthcare worker deaths since Oct. 7, 2023. He did not specify how many of the recent deaths had been verified by UN human rights monitors.

Israel says it targets military capabilities in Lebanon and Gaza and takes steps to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians. It accuses Hezbollah, like Hamas, of hiding among civilians, which they deny.