Rabat- Peaches Geldof, a TV presenter, journalist, and daughter of pop singer Bob Geldof, died on April 7, 2014 at the age of 25, leaving behind two sons and a husband. Police described her death as “unexplained and sudden.” She had been to Morocco a few years ago to work on a documentary about Islam.

Geldof visited Morocco when she was 17 years old to experience life with a devout Muslim family as a teenager, which was featured in a documentary titled, “The Beginner’s Guide to Islam.” She stayed with a Moroccan girl, Nadira, and embraced a Muslim lifestyle.  

In a show called Richard and Judy on the British Channel 4, Peaches described her two-week experience in Marrakesh as “shocking.” She wanted to find answers to questions such as: What is Islam? Why is it misinterpreted by the media and by general people?”

The host of the show, Richard, brought up the issue of the sacrifice of animals in Islam, which dates back to the time of Prophet Abraham. Peaches explained the ritual of slaughtering sheep on Eid- al-Adha as “they eat the whole of the sheep, like the brain and stuff. It is a religious thing. While here it is just a combat for survival. It is ceremonial and better than mass killings in abattoirs. It is part of their religion”.

To experience the Islamic appearance for girls, Geldof accompanied Nadira to a local market in the city of Marrakesh, dressed in a white Jelaba and white headscarf. She openly expressed her feelings about being covered, “I feel a bit degraded having to cover up my hair and my whole body in a kind of a shapeless sacs and no one can see how I look, it makes me feel a little bit sad to be honest.”

Richard inquired if Nadira had shared her feelings about being covered with Geldof during her stay. Gedof confirmed that when Nadira showed her some clothes from the days before she wore hijb, she felt nostalgic for those days. However, she told Geldof, “This is how I looked like, but now my life is for Allah.”

Geldof added, “It is kind of oppressing but at the same time is admirable because they are doing it for themselves and in the name of God and they are not doing it for men”.

Geldof’s interest in understanding Islam may have been a bit subjective considering she came from the fashion industry, where the standards of beauty are framed and limited. This shows clearly in her reaction to wearing the Jelaba as feeling “oppressed.” However, she did also point to the fact that, ““women in the West are being exploited because they have to dress in a certain way and purely to titillate men.” 

Edited by Saba Naseem

Agadir - The 2nd Morocco-Russian joint committee on sea fisheries opened, on Monday in Agadir, with the aim of evaluating the implementation of the fisheries agreement concluded by the two parties, a year after its enforcement.

At the opening of the session, agriculture minister Aziz Akhannouch lauded efforts made to ensure an ideal implementation of this agreement which contributes to fostering cooperation ties between the two countries, while respecting the strategic broad lines of the Halieutis Plan and its various programs.

Russian counterpart Ilay Shestakov hailed the holding of this joint committee which is part of continuous consultations between the two sides.

Morocco and Russia concluded in February 2013 a new fisheries agreement for a period of four years, the sixth since 1992, under which ten Russian fishing vessels are allowed to enter the waters of Morocco against an annual financial compensation.

Casablanca - A Moroccan suspected of planning a terrorist attack was arrested by the FBI on Monday in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States.

El Mehdi Semlali Fahti, a Moroccan residing in the U.S., was recently arrested for allegedly plotting a terrorist attack against a school and a Connecticut federal building, according to Russia Today and Connecticut Post.

The 27-year-old Moroccan was allegedly plotting a terrorist attack deploying a radio-controlled, drone-like toy that he intended to use as a flying bomb, according to the same sources.

The FBI, however, could not specify which of the buildings Fahti was targeting, the school or the federal building.

FBI agents allegedly found wires and tools in a High Ridge Drive apartment Fahti shared with someone he had met when he was jailed in Virginia, according to the Connecticut Post.

Yet, it was not determined whether explosives were found in Fahti’s apartment, according to the same source.

Fahti allegedly told an undercover agent in five recorded conversations that he had been plotting the said terrorist attack for months, and that he had already made a chemical bomb when he was a high school student in Morocco, according to the same source.

The recordings allegedly claim that Fathi could acquire everything his plan necessitated at “Southern California on the border.”

Fathi was allegedly planning to get the money he needed for his terrorist plan from "secret accounts,” consisting of money-laundered cash and drug dealing profits, the FBI was quoted by the Connecticut Post as saying.

Fathi is also accused of falsifying declarations to a federal Immigration judge, which allowed him to stay in the U.S. for seven years after his student visa had expired, according to the same source.

While facing deportation to Morocco, Fathi applied for asylum, claiming before the Immigration Court that he had been the victim of arrests, imprisonment and beatings by Moroccan police, according to the same source.

Photo:  ALEX BRANDON, AP

Fez - According to the American website TripAvisor, Marrakech ranks the world’s sixth tourist destination.

According to the reviews posted by millions of travelers, Istanbul is the world’s top destination followed by Rome, London, Beijing, Prague.

The French capital ranks in 7th place after the Morocco’s top tourist destination.

The Moroccan city comes ahead of other prestigious destinations, such as New York (12th), Barcelona (15th), Dubai (17th), Chicago (18th), Sydney (22nd), San Francisco (25th).

The American website bases its sixth annual Traveler's Choice Destination on users' rankings for hotels, attractions, and restaurants at the destinations over a 12 month-period.

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Taroudant, Morocco- According to a new study published on April 4 in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, the health benefits of infant male circumcision immensely outweigh the risks involved in the procedure.

 “A risk-benefit analysis of conditions that neonatal circumcision protects against revealed that benefits exceed risks by at least 100 to 1 and that over their lifetime, half of uncircumcised males will require treatment for a medical condition associated with retention of the foreskin,” the study confirmed.

“The benefits of circumcision begin in the neonatal period by protection against infections that can damage the pediatric kidney,” and “that neonatal male circumcision is cost-effective for disease prevention, according to the same study.

The authors Morris BJ and Wiswell TE conclude that the benefits of circumcision, a common practice in the Islamic and Jewish societies at an early age, include reduced risks of urinary tract infection, prostate cancer and sexually transmitted diseases.

The lead author, Brian J. Morris, emeritus professor of medical sciences at the University of Sydney said: “Circumcision is a biomedical imperative for the 21st century,” and the procedure carried at an early age is likely to protect the circumcised.

He added, “Male circumcision is in principle equivalent to childhood vaccination,” and any delay puts the health of the child in danger.

“Just as there are opponents of vaccination, there are opponents of circumcision. But their arguments are emotional and unscientific, and should be disregarded,” the professor added.

The study says that the circumcision of newborn boys “should be part of public health policies.”

In 2012, and for the first time, the American Academy of Pediatrics said, “The preventative health benefits of infant circumcision clearly outweigh the risks.”

Circumcision is the surgical removal of the foreskin, a small fold of skin that covers the tip of the penis. Traditionally, in Morocco, an expert practitioner, a common person who gained his expertise only through practice, performs circumcision at home few days after birth but recently parents entrust their sons to surgeons.

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Rabat-  Over five billion dirhams ($614 million) will be invested by private partners in 2014 in the sector of hydrocarbons and mining, Amina Benkhadra, director of Morocco’s national office for hydrocarbons and mining (ONHYM) said on Tuesday in Rabat.

Morocco will witness the drilling of 27 wells in the different sedimentary basins onshore and offshore in 2014, she added according to MAP.

2014 will be an extremely important year in terms of investment. Over the past year, a growing number of foreign companies showed interest in Morocco, namely the British Petroleum and Chevron, Benkhadra told the press on the sidelines of the 2nd session of the ONHYM board of directors, chaired by head of government Abdelilah Benkirane.

She said that 2013, which was marked by a growing of drilling for hydrocarbons with the participation of 34 partners, witnessed a global investment of 2.3 billion dirhams, including 58 million dirhams allocated by the state-run body.

Partners launched the first drilling works. Fours drills were operated in 2013, two in the Gharb, one off the Atlantic ocean in Foum Draa and the last one in Sidi Mokhtar in the region of Essaouira, she said.

Rabat- Six Moroccan journalists have been nominated for awards at the 13^thannual Dubai Press Club’s Arab Journalism Awards that take place on June 21, 2014, in Dubai.

The Club announced the 36 contestants competing for awards in different categories on April 7th, according to local media.

“There is a fierce competition among the different categories, with 9.3% higher candidatures than previous awards,” according to the director of the Arab Journalism Awards, Mona Bousamra. “Contributions exceeded 4,500 entries breaking the record since the competition started in 1999”  She added that, “There are 11 competing categories, and the committee did not eliminate any of them this year given the high quality of articles that were eligible to compete in each category,” reported local media.

The Moroccan journalists are competing in two categories: the Arab Journalism Award for Youth and the Award for Humanitarian Press.

The nominees for the Arab Journalism Award for Youth include:

Aziz El Hour, a journalist at the Moroccan daily: Al-Akhbar Al-Maghribiya.

Mohammed Abou Qamar, a journalist at the Palestinian newspaper Arrisala.

Rajaa Bettaoui, a journalist at the Moroccan daily: Maghreb Al-Yaoum.

Imad Stitou, a journalist at the Moroccan online newspaper: Hespress.   

Mohammed Aheddad and Sami El-Moudni, journalists at the Moroccan daily: Massaa Al-Yaoum.

The nominees for the Humanitarian Press award are:

Ahmed Mdiyani, journalist at the Moroccan daily: Maghreb Al-Yaoum.

Nour El Hayat Qwider, a journalist at the Algerian newspaper: Waqt Al-Jazaer.

Hiba Saleh, a journalist at the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahali Al-masriya.

The Dubai Press Club was founded by the Vice President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed Ben Rashed Al-Maktoum, who sought to create a platform for journalists and media professionals to debate issues from different angles and on different levels. The Awards were first launched in 1999 to reinforce the advancement of journalism in the Arab world and recognize journalists who make borders between countries invisible and deliver information honestly and accurately.

Edited by Elisabeth Myers

Casablanca- Hind Kettani, a Moroccan residing in the U.S., is in search for her two children allegedly kidnapped by their Moroccan father on November 21, 2011, in New York.

The two brothers, six-year-old Elias Tahiri and 8-year-old Adam Tahiri, were allegedly abducted by their father, Faysal Tahiri, 38.

Their mother, Hind Kettani, had already posted an announcement on the website missingkids.com and recently created a Facebook page requesting help to find her missing kids.

According to the details available both on the website and on the Facebook page, a federal arrest warrant for International Parental Kidnapping was issued for Faycal on September 26, 2013.

The father and the two children are now believed to be in Saudi Arabia. The abductor’s mother, Aziza Ouali Idrissi, was allegedly proven by the FBI to be accomplice with her son.

The kidnapper’s father, Tahiri Abderrahim, lives in Morocco and runs car rental agencies called Sixt France Car in Casablanca and Marakkech, according to Kettani.

“It is a cry of intense pain of a mother who was separated from her children,” reads the mother’s post on the Facebook Page she recently created. “I ask every human being to help me find my children,” she says.

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Madrid -  King Juan Carlos of Spain received this Wednesday at the Royal palace of Madrid, Morocco's new ambassador, Mohamed Fadel Benyaich, who handed him his credentials as ambassador of King Mohammed VI to Spain.

The meeting took place in the presence of Spanish foreign minister, José Manuel Garcia-Margallo.

According to Spanish newspaper El Mundo, this is the first time since February 2012 that King Juan Carlos receives news Ambassadors accredited to Spain. Benyaich was received by the Spanish monarch along with the Ambassadors of Thailand, Oman, Indonesia and the Czech Republic and Malaysia.

Benyaich replaces Ahmed Ould Souilem, a former prominent figure in the Polisario, who was appointed Morocco’s Ambassador to Spain in 2010.

The post of Morocco’s Ambassador to Madrid is a highly sensitive responsibility and  King Mohammed VI has often made sure to nominate people who enjoy their trust and know closely the complexities of the relations between Morocco and Spain.

New York  -  Morocco's inter-ministerial delegate for human rights, Mahjoub El Haiba, is taking part in New York in the 47th session of the UN Commission on population and development (Apr.7-11) "to assess the status of implementation of the program of action of the international conference of population and development, held in Cairo in 1994.

The week-long forum will assess action taken over the past 20 years to improve people’s lives and address population issues amid changes in ageing, fertility, mortality, migration and urbanization, since the landmark Cairo international conference.

That conference established that increasing access to health and education, and protecting human rights, especially those of women and teenagers, would help secure a better social and economic future and lead to more sustainable population trends.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon noted that with the ICPD Program of Action, Governments set out an ambitious agenda to deliver inclusive, equitable and sustainable development. "Over the past two decades, this agenda has contributed to significant advances," he said in a message to the Commission.

"Fewer people are living in extreme poverty. Gender equality and the empowerment of women are gaining ground worldwide. More people are living longer, healthier lives. More girls are in school. Fewer women are dying in pregnancy and childbirth. There are more laws to protect and uphold human rights."

Yet, in the midst of this human progress, the continued exclusion of some groups and the potential for serious environmental damage put these gains at risk, Ban continued. Moreover, changing age, household and family structures as well as rapid urbanization and migration pose new challenges for human development.

"We have an urgent responsibility, to invest in creating opportunities and a supportive environment for innovation and entrepreneurship for persons of all ages, in particular for young people. It is crucial to invest in their health and education and to review legislation, standards and practices that restrict their full participation in and access to sexual and reproductive health services."

The IPCD Global Review Report, issued by the UN in February, pointed out that much remains to be done on a range of issues, including the enormous inequalities that remain in the realization of human rights and access to vital services, as well as new challenges and opportunities related to population growth, changing age structures, rapid urbanization and migration.

Since 1994, the global population has grown from 5.7 to 7.2 billion. Despite slowing population growth, UN projections suggest the world’s population could reach 9.6 billion by 2050, with most of the increase concentrated in the poorest countries.

According to a report prepared by the Secretary-General for the Commission, the current state of the world’s population is one of unprecedented diversity and change, as reflected in new patterns of ageing, fertility, mortality, migration and urbanization.

According to a news release on the Commission’s opening, older persons are the world’s fastest growing age group. The number of people over age 60 almost doubled between 1994 and 2014, and older persons today outnumber children under the age of five. Globally, the share of older persons is expected to reach 21 per cent by 2050.

Paris - Four Moroccan groups are listed among North Africa's top ten enterprises for 2014, according to a ranking published by "Jeune Afrique" weekly published in Paris.

The groups are Samir (oil refining), SNI (national investment company) OCP (phosphates) and Maroc Telecom.

Samir and SNI also appear in the top 20 list of 500 best enterprises.

Overall, 77 Moroccan enterprises are listed among the 500 first African groups, representing 15.4pc) for a total turnover of 67.2 billion DH (accounting for 8.89 pc of the 500 companies' income) .

The weekly also notes that several Moroccan enterprises conquered in 2013 the Sub-Sahara market, including real estate group Addoha and Alliances who took contracts in Cote d'Ivoire and Congo, recalling that the Moroccan GDP progressed last year by 5.1 pc.

The weekly established its listing after a census and a poll of 10,318 companies.

Casablanca- Two teenage girls who went missing in Marrakech were recently found captivein a house in Casablanca, according to daily Assabah.

After four days of investigation, Hay Hassani police in Casablanca finally found the two girls, who had been abducted in Marrakech, held captive in a house in Casablanca.

According to daily Assabah’s Wednesday issue, it was thanks to the father of one of the victims that both girls were eventually found. The father had checked his daughter’s Facebook page and posts to discover that his daughter had been communicating online with individuals from Casablanca.  The father found that the suspects had persuaded his daughter to leave her home in Marrakech and join them in Casablanca, according to the same source.

The girl’s father subsequently lodged a complaint against the suspects, and the police then opened an investigation.  Less than 24 hours later, the police had arrested one of the people the girls had been chatting with on Facebook. The suspect subsequently led the police to where the girls were being held captive.  

The investigation is far from being over, however.  The police suspect the existence of a larger criminal network, specializing in child abduction.

Taroudant, Morocco- Bouchra Marmoul, the first Moroccan female jockey, will represent Morocco in the seventh edition of the Grand Prix of Prince Moulay Hassan on April 11 at the Casablanca-Anfa racetrack, competing for the prize of Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak.

 A distinguished cavalier recently approved by “la Société Royale d’Encouragement du Cheval (SOREC)” the Royal Company for the Promotion of the Horse, the young woman will race alongside professional jockeys at this prestigious event reserved for the best riders in the world.

 She is “an exceptional woman who marked the history of horse racing the Kingdom,” wrote the Company in their official Facebook page.

"It is an honor for me to be the first female jockey in Morocco. I trained continuously in recent weeks. Physically, It's a bit hard, but I hope to finish the race in the top five," said Marmoul to h24info.

 Bouchra did well in her first race on Sunday, March 30, at the Rabat-Souissi racetrack, and is now collecting her strength and skills to better represent Morocco in this upcoming challenging event.

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Washington- The Sahara autonomy plan under the Moroccan sovereignty is "serious, credible and realistic," reaffirmed "clearly" US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs, William Roebuck, at a hearing in the US Congress devoted to US policy vis-à- vis Morocco.

"Concerning the Moroccan autonomy plan, we clearly stated that the plan is serious, credible and realistic and is a potential approach that can satisfy the aspirations of the peoples of the Sahara to manage their own affairs in peace and dignity," said the senior U.S. official before the subcommittee in charge of the Near East and North Africa within the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives.

The U.S. policy towards the Sahara issue "thus remains unchanged throughout the past years," said Roebuck, adding that Washington supports the process led by the United Nations that aims to achieve a peaceful, lasting and mutually acceptable settlement.

He said Washington also supports "the work done by the Personal Envoy of the Secretary General of the UN and the efforts by the United Nations" on the matter.

On the other hand, he urged the parties "to work towards a resolution" to end the conflict.

Madrid - King Juan Carlos 1 of Spain is "committed to the development" of the existing excellent relations between Morocco and Spain, said Wednesday in Madrid, Mohamed Fadel Benyaich, Ambassador of King Mohammed VI to Spain.

"His Majesty King Juan Carlos has underlined his commitment to developing bilateral relations" in order to strengthen them at all levels, said Ambassador Fadel Benyaich in a statement to the press following his meeting with the Spanish sovereign to present his credentials as the new Ambassador of the Kingdom to Madrid.

On this occasion, the Moroccan diplomat said he discussed with the Spanish Sovereign and Foreign Minister, José Manuel García- Margallo, a number of issues concerning relations between the two kingdoms and means to give a new impetus to bilateral ties, especially in the economic, cultural, and social fields.

Fadel Benyaich described as "exceptional, very friendly and strong" relations between King Mohammed VI and the Spanish sovereign.

He said he was tasked by King Juan Carlos to convey his "respectful greetings" to the King and his consideration for the initiatives undertaken by the Sovereign for the development of the Kingdom.

Taroudant, Morocco- More than a year after the Gulf Cooperation Council invited Morocco and Jordan to join a regional grouping before withdrawing their offer, the Gulf countries are now calling for Morocco to join them in a military alliance.

According to Al Massae, the new military alliance will eventually include the 6 countries of the GCC, as well as Morocco, Jordan and Egypt.

The GCC, which includes Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, has already sent a formal request to the three countries to join the proposed military alliance.

According to the same source, the GCC countries are considering ways to strengthen their regional grouping in light of the instability in the Middle East.

Through the military alliance, the GCC seeks to secure the assistance of a total of 300,000 troops from Morocco, Egypt and Jordan. In exchange, the three countries will be provided with financial aid.

But as things stand in Egypt, whose military leadership is not recognized by Qatar,  it is unclear how successful this military alliance will be. Qatar considers the toppling of former President Mohammed Morsi a military coup. What may make things even harder is the strained relations between some Gulf countries themselves, who have different views regarding the situation in Egypt.

While Qatar still does not support the new Egyptian government, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain are supportive of military control over Egypt’s politics and their iron-fisted approach to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Last month, in an unprecedented move, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain decided to withdraw their ambassadors from Qatar because of Doha’s alleged support for the Muslim Brotherhood and Al Jazeera’s coverage of Egypt since former President Mohammed Morsi was overthrown in July 2013.

Edited by Jessica Rohan

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Casablanca- In a recent video posted on YouTube, a young Sahrawi denounced the recruitment of Sahrawi youth to the Polisario’s armed militia.  

The video came as a response to another video posted a few weeks ago, in which a Sahrawi called on the Sahrawi population to stand up against the Polisario leadership by defending their rights through a project entitled “A Minute of Truth”.

The young Sahrawi in the video identified himself as a member of the Sahrawi Movement for Change, which carried out several initiatives through which it denounced the Polisario leadership.

In the video, the young man condemns the recruitment of young Sahrawi people to the Polisario’s militia, citing his own experience as an example. According to him, he was forced to join the militia when he was 15 years old, and spent 1 year training to use weapons.

According to the Sahraw whose name was not disclosed, what he experienced as a young soldier in the militia was not an exceptional case. The Polisario requires all Sahrawi children who escaped expatriation to Cuba to spend several years away from their families.

The young Sahrawi man also demanded that the leader of the Polisario, Mohamed Abdelaziz, and other officials in the Front be replaced.

This video comes after a series of leaked videos in which young Sahrawis denounce what they describe as the abuses committed by the leadership of the Polisario against dissenting voices in the Tindouf camps.

In one of the videos posted on YouTube last month, a young  Sahrawi described the dire situation of the population in the camps and called on the international community to find an “urgent resolution” to their long-lasting suffering.

Edited by Jessica Rohan

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Bouya Omar, Morocco - A thin mist hangs in the air as a handful of troubled souls wander aimlessly around the Bouya Omar mausoleum in central Morocco, the occasional chilling cry rising from behind its walls.

These are Morocco's "possessed" -- from violent schizophrenics to hard drug users -- who are believed to be tormented by evil spirits and whose relatives bring them here to await deliverance.

But many are left wondering exactly what goes on inside the sanctuary of the 16th-century Moroccan saint, situated in a small town named after him on the plains east of Marrakesh.

Bouya Omar's followers claim the mentally ill are healed by the saint's supernatural powers, but rights groups allege gross mistreatment of those taken there, with one former inmate describing months of "hell".

Activists say hundreds of people have been kept in chains here, sometimes starved and beaten, making the place a byword for cruelty and highlighting the stigma attached to mental illness in Morocco.

Their numbers cannot be verified and officials are reluctant to speak about what they say is a "sensitive subject".

Mohammed, a former drug addict from Tangiers, is adamant that he was subjected to brutal treatment seven years ago.

Taken to Bouya Omar by his brother in 2006 to be cured of his "demon", he says he was shackled and beaten repeatedly, given barely enough food to survive and robbed of the little money he had.

"I lived in hell for a year," Mohammed told AFP, adding that the experience had left him partially blind in one eye.

He says his brother eventually returned and "saved" him.

Damning reports about mistreatment, including one presented by a human rights organisation to the UN group on arbitrary detention visiting Morocco in December, prompted the health minister to announce that he would close Bouya Omar immediately -- if only he could.

"I'm going to do everything I can to get this centre closed. Unfortunately the decision is not for the ministry of health," Hossein El Ouardi said in January.

Popular beliefs 

The issue touches a sensitive nerve running through Moroccan society.

Popular beliefs abound in the Muslim country, about good and bad genies ("jnun") capable of affecting one's daily life, and the power over them of marabouts, holy men like Bouya Omar, whose ubiquitous white tombs are credited with the same supernatural forces.

Over the past decade, sociologists say, King Mohammed VI has encouraged such popular Islamic beliefs, commonly linked in Morocco to the world of healing, partly as a way of countering extremist ideology.

Despite the human rights violations now associated with it, the cult of Bouya Omar falls squarely within this tradition.

The saint's modern-day followers, who embody his authority and profit handsomely from the money paid for healing, mediate between the "patients" and the jnun believed to have possessed them, in rituals focused around the tomb and aimed at casting out the evil spirits.

"The health minister cannot close Bouya Omar because it serves a political purpose and exists for other social and cultural reasons that are deeply rooted in Moroccan society," says author and academic Zakaria Rhani.

Promoting the culture of sainthood also strengthens the king's legitimacy, which is itself based on the mythology of sainthood and inherited religious authority, Rhani says, referring to the monarch's claim to be descended from the Muslim Prophet Mohammed.

A source at the ministry of religious affairs admitted Bouya Omar is a "very complex and sensitive subject."

 

"The patient is imprisoned in a way to protect him, and to restrain this force, which is a kind of blind force, to exorcise the spirit," he said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"We leave people there because we can't look after them. But it's a traditional system and it has to change."

'Crime against humanity'

The difficulty of properly looking after the patients, by getting them treatment at psychiatric facilities run by qualified personnel, stems from the backward state of Morocco's mental health sector after decades of neglect, medical experts say.

Jallal Toufiq, head doctor at the Arrazi mental hospital in Rabat's twin city Sale, says there are only 400 psychiatrists in a country of 33 million people, while some of the psychiatric institutions are in a "very advanced state of disrepair".

The US-trained doctor describes the practises at Bouya Omar as a "crime against humanity," lamenting the "extremely negative attitude towards mental illness" in Morocco, which he mainly attributes to poor eduction.

"The level of awareness in the general population is so low that a lot of people tend to interpret their syndromes, their delusions and anxieties, as a curse, as something that has nothing to do with medicine.

"So they seek healings in marabouts, and the problem is that they come to see us long after, when they're in bad shape."

Mohammed Oubouli, an activists with the Moroccan Association of Human Rights in Attaouia, a town near Bouya Omar, has campaigned for years to get what he calls "Morocco's Guantanamo" closed.

"We're not against what the people believe; they can believe what they like. What bothers us is the suffering of those brought here."

Rabat - According to Italian Press, Bayern Munich is interested in securing the transfer of Morocco’s and AS Roma defender Mehdi Benatia.

The same information was reported by Italian journalist and beIN Sport correspondent, Tancredi Palmeri, who said in his Twitter account that “Bayern Munich have been scouting Benatia in last 4 games.”

Bayern Munich have been scouting Benatia in last 4 games, according to Sky Italy — Tancredi Palmeri (@tancredipalmeri) March 25, 2014

The German team adds to a long list of big European clubs interested in the Moroccan player, namely F.C. Barcelona, Manchester United and the Paris S.G.

“The leaders at Roma are aware of the fact that other big clubs are interested in Mehdi...We’ll have a meeting with the club soon and we’ll see what happens from there.  At the moment though, all I will say is that the lad feels very good in Rome,” the player’s agent was quoted by Italian website, Chiesa Di Totti, as saying.

According to the Moroccan website Alyoum24, Bayern Munich is ready to put to 20 million euros ($27 million), almost the same amount reportedly offered by Barcelona a couple of weeks ago.

But after FIFA, the ruling body of world football, banned FC Barcelona from signing any new players until the summer of 2015, it is unlikely that the Moroccan defender will wear the blaugrana jersey next year.

This FIFA ruling may pave the way for Bayern Munich to recruit AS Roma’s defender.

AS Roma recruited Mehdi Benatia from Udinese for € 13.5 million. The Italian club coach Rudi Garcia relies heavily on the player, but playing for the Spanish team could be a good opportunity for the Moroccan national, who was named the best Moroccan athlete in 2013.

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