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Morocco MPs Vote to Bolster French in Education System

A student reads French words during a class in the Oudaya primary school in Rabat, Morocco January 31, 2019. (Reuters)
A student reads French words during a class in the Oudaya primary school in Rabat, Morocco January 31, 2019. (Reuters)
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Morocco MPs Vote to Bolster French in Education System

A student reads French words during a class in the Oudaya primary school in Rabat, Morocco January 31, 2019. (Reuters)
A student reads French words during a class in the Oudaya primary school in Rabat, Morocco January 31, 2019. (Reuters)

Moroccan lawmakers passed a draft law on Monday evening that would pave the way for strengthening the place of French in Moroccan schools, overturning decades of Arabization.

The legislation was adopted in the lower house by 241-4, with 21 abstentions. Most members of the co-ruling PJD and conservative Istiqlal lawmakers abstained from voting on the articles stipulating the use of French as a language of instruction, reported Reuters.

The text will enter into force after a second reading in the upper house and its publication in the official bulletin.

The country’s official languages are Arabic and Amazigh. Most people speak Moroccan Arabic – a mixture of Arabic and Amazigh infused with French and Spanish influences.

French reigns supreme, however, in business, government and higher education, giving those who can afford to be privately schooled in French a huge advantage over most of the country’s students.

Two out of three people fail to complete their studies at public universities in Morocco, mainly because they do not speak French, according to education ministry figures.

To curb the number of university dropouts and equip people with the language requirements needed for jobs, the government proposed reintroducing French as a language of teaching science, mathematics and technical subjects.

Such classes are taught in Arabic up to high school - a disconnect with French-dominated higher education.

The adoption of the draft law irked advocates of Arabization, including the former secretary general of the PJD party, Abdelilah Benkirane, who described the reintroduction of the language of the former colonial power as a betrayal of the “party’s principles.”

Two parliamentarians from a coalition of leftist parties, Omar Balafrej and Mostafa Chennaoui, voted against the draft law after the rejection of their amendments to enshrine a tax on wealth and a progressive inheritance tax to fund education reform.

Morocco increased the education budget by 5.4 billion dirhams ($561 million) in 2019 to 68 billion dirhams ($7 billion) as it seeks to boost access and improve infrastructure notably in hard-to-reach areas.

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Arab World

US Increases its Pressure on Iran in Iraq

Coordination Framework leaders during a meeting in Baghdad. Iraqi News Agency
Coordination Framework leaders during a meeting in Baghdad. Iraqi News Agency
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US Increases its Pressure on Iran in Iraq

Coordination Framework leaders during a meeting in Baghdad. Iraqi News Agency
Coordination Framework leaders during a meeting in Baghdad. Iraqi News Agency

US pressure over Iranian influence in Iraq is increasing amid consultations to form a new government and messages from Washington affirming its willingness to use “the full range of tools” to counter what it describes as “Iran’s destabilizing activities.”

US Chargé d’Affaires Joshua Harris confirmed during a meeting on Thursday with Abdul Hussein Al-Mousawi, head of the National Approach Alliance, that any Iraqi government “should remain fully independent and focused on advancing the national interests of all Iraqis.”

A US embassy statement said the meeting addressed the importance of a strong partnership between the United States and Iraq that delivers “tangible benefits” for both sides within the framework of safeguarding Iraqi sovereignty, bolstering regional stability, and strengthening economic ties.

Harris stressed his country’s readiness “to use the full range of tools to counter Iran’s destabilizing activities in Iraq,” a statement seen as a dual message directed at forces linked to Tehran and at blocs engaged in government formation negotiations.

The media office of the National Approach Alliance, which is part of the Coordination Framework, stated that the meeting discussed the latest developments in Iraq and the region, and ways to strengthen bilateral relations “in line with the principle of mutual sovereign respect and shared interests.”

It also addressed consultations among political parties to abide by constitutional mechanisms and the results of elections.

Both sides stressed the importance of ensuring the success of negotiations between the US and Iran in a way that contributes to de-escalation and the adoption of dialogue.

Last month, US President Donald Trump warned Iraq over a reinstatement of Nouri al-Maliki as prime minister, saying that the country “descended into poverty and total chaos” under his previous leadership.

“That should not be allowed to happen again” Trump wrote on social media.

Al-Maliki, who has long-standing ties to Iran, dismissed Trump’s threat as “blatant American interference in Iraq’s internal affairs,” and vowed to “continue to work until we reach the end.”

The Coordination Framework, which holds a parliamentary majority, has named al-Maliki to serve again as Iraq’s prime minister, citing his “political and administrative experience and role in managing the state.”

Arab World

German Parliament Speaker Visits Gaza

Displaced Palestinians fleeing Israeli military operations in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza strip walk along the Salah al-Din main road in eastern Gaza City making their way to the city center, on October 22, 2024, amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
Displaced Palestinians fleeing Israeli military operations in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza strip walk along the Salah al-Din main road in eastern Gaza City making their way to the city center, on October 22, 2024, amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
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German Parliament Speaker Visits Gaza

Displaced Palestinians fleeing Israeli military operations in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza strip walk along the Salah al-Din main road in eastern Gaza City making their way to the city center, on October 22, 2024, amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
Displaced Palestinians fleeing Israeli military operations in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza strip walk along the Salah al-Din main road in eastern Gaza City making their way to the city center, on October 22, 2024, amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

The speaker of Germany's lower house of parliament briefly visited the Israeli-controlled part of the Gaza Strip on Thursday, the body told AFP.

Julia Kloeckner spent "about an hour in the part of Gaza controlled by Israeli army forces", parliament said, becoming the first German official to visit the territory since Hamas's attack on Israel in October 2023 that sparked the devastating war.

Since the start of the conflict, Israel has drastically restricted access to the densely populated coastal strip.

In a statement shared by her office, Kloeckner said it was essential for politicians to have access to "reliable assessments of the situation" in Gaza.

"I expressly welcome the fact that Israel has now, for the first time, granted me, a parliamentary observer, access to the Gaza Strip," she said.

However, she was only able to gain a "limited insight" into the situation on the ground during her trip, she said.

Kloeckner appealed to Israel to "continue on this path of openness" and emphasised that the so-called yellow line, which designates Israeli military zones inside the Gaza Strip, must "not become a permanent barrier".

Contacted by AFP, the German foreign ministry said it would "not comment on travel plans or trips by other constitutional bodies that wish to assess the situation on the ground".

Germany has been one of Israel's staunchest supporters as the European power seeks to atone for the legacy of the Holocaust.

But in recent months, Chancellor Friedrich Merz has occasionally delivered sharp critiques of Israeli policy as German public opinion turns against Israel's actions in Gaza.

In August, Germany imposed a partial arms embargo on Israel, which was lifted in November after the announcement of what has proved to be a fragile ceasefire for Gaza.

Merz visited Israel in December and reaffirmed Germany's support.

But in a sign of lingering tension, Germany's foreign ministry on Wednesday criticized Israeli plans to tighten control over the occupied West Bank as a step toward "de facto annexation".

Arab World

Syria Says its Forces Have Taken over al-Tanf Base after a Handover from the US

FILE: Members of the Maghawir al-Thawra Syrian opposition group receive firearms training from US Army Special Forces soldiers at the al-Tanf military outpost in southern Syria in 2018. (AP/Lolita Baldor)
FILE: Members of the Maghawir al-Thawra Syrian opposition group receive firearms training from US Army Special Forces soldiers at the al-Tanf military outpost in southern Syria in 2018. (AP/Lolita Baldor)
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Syria Says its Forces Have Taken over al-Tanf Base after a Handover from the US

FILE: Members of the Maghawir al-Thawra Syrian opposition group receive firearms training from US Army Special Forces soldiers at the al-Tanf military outpost in southern Syria in 2018. (AP/Lolita Baldor)
FILE: Members of the Maghawir al-Thawra Syrian opposition group receive firearms training from US Army Special Forces soldiers at the al-Tanf military outpost in southern Syria in 2018. (AP/Lolita Baldor)

Syrian government forces have taken control of a base in the east of the country that was run for years by US troops as part of the war against the ISIS group, the Defense Ministry said in a statement Thursday.

The al-Tanf base sits on a strategic location, close to the borders with Jordan and Iraq. In a terse statement, the Syrian Defense Ministry said the handover of the base took place in coordination with the US military and Syrian forces are now “securing the base and its perimeters.”

The US military did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press regarding the Syrian statement.

The Syrian Defense Ministry also said that Syrian troops are now in place in the desert area around the al-Tanf garrison, with border guards to deploy in the coming days.

The deployment of Syrian troops at al-Tanf and in the surrounding areas comes after last month’s deal between the government and the US-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, to merge into the military.

Al-Tanf garrison was repeatedly attacked over the past years with drones by Iran-backed groups but such attacks have dropped sharply following the fall of Bashar Assad’s government in Syria in December 2024.

Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa has been expanding his control of the country, and last month government forces captured wide parts of northeast Syria after deadly clashes with the SDF. A ceasefire was later reached between the two sides.

Al-Tanf base played a major role in the fight against the ISIS group that declared a caliphate in large parts of Syria and Iraq in 2014. ISIS was defeated in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria two years later.

Over the past weeks, the US military began transferring thousands of ISIS prisoners from prisons run by the SDF in northeastern Syria to Iraq, where they will be prosecuted.

The number of US troops posted in Syria has changed over the years.

The number of US troops increased to more than 2,000 after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas in Israel, as Iranian-backed militants targeted American troops and interests in the region in response to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.

The force has since been drawn back down to around 900.