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Is the Tunisian "Arab Spring" about to Repeat in Morocco?

(Institute for Contemporary Affairs-Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Col. (ret.) Dr. Jacques Neriah - Domestic unrest is brewing in Morocco and the regime is unable to control the situation and calm down the passions. On October 28, 2016, in the coastal town of Al-Hoceima, police threw Mouhcine Fikri's whole fish catch into a waste truck. The fishmonger tried to save his catch and jumped into the truck where he was crushed to death. The gruesome event ignited a series of protests which have been ongoing since then, spreading even to Morocco's main cities - Rabat, Casablanca, and Tangier. Since the beginning of the millennium, Morocco has been facing steady attacks by jihadists, ISIS, and al-Qaeda, organizations whose ultimate goal is to destabilize the kingdom. Facing the growing danger of extreme Islam, King Mohammad VI has embarked on a special religious education program aimed at neutralizing all extremist interpretations of the Koran. He instructed the Ministry of Education to remove from schoolbooks all references to jihad and killing, while initiating an innovative program for the training of religious clerks, preachers, imams, and kadis. The writer, a special analyst for the Jerusalem Center, was former Deputy Head for Assessment of Israeli Military Intelligence.
2017-06-29 00:00:00
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