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NEWS
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(U.S. Marine Corps Photo by
Sergeant Justin Park) |
AFRICOM has officially assumed all the duties and responsibilities of a full-fledged geographic unified command by taking over from EUCOM and CENTCOM all DoD operations pertaining to 53 African nations except for Egypt which will remain a CENTCOM area of operation. Negotiations, which were kept secret to mitigate regional political sensitivities, namely of Algeria and Libya, between the Moroccan government and AFRICOM Commanding General, General William E. Ward, to secure a location in Cap Draa in the Tan Tan region have been ongoing. Cap Draa as a host to AFRICOM has finally been confirmed by reliable US sources. This confirmation was reported this week by a number of international and national media outlets. The base in Cap Draa will be operational in 2011.
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VIEWPOINT -
JAMAL LAOUDI
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 Shut down your belief system,
And tag along for a moment.
What is life?
One day, you are born.
Another day, you are no more.
How many will remember you?
One? Few tens? Few hundreds? Few thousands? More?
To what degree is that up to you?
For how long will you be remembered?
A Generation? Two? Many?
To what degree is that up to you?
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AHMED T.B.
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 My nine years old niece, who is attending the CM2 (equivalent to 4th grade in the US), approached me and asked if I could help her understand a few concepts from her social studies book. She was eager to know what human/civil rights are, and as citizens, what our obligations are. I took her book and put it aside. I grabbed a magazine from the stack of publications I pile up by my desk once a week. The magazine was “nishan.” It had a picture of Yacoubi, moments after he shot and wounded Tariq Mouhib
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ZAK ETTAMYMY
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Dear Mr. Frank R. Wolf,
 I represent a Think tank that promotes the Moroccan interests in the US, I am deeply saddened by you hostile position against Morocco, the first country to recognize this great nation, a country who fought shoulder to should with the Americans against tyrants in the world, a country who sided with the US in the cold war and mainly a country who values America and considers it an old friend.
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MOHAMED BENFADIL
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 On prête au Maroc et au Mexique, depuis quelques décennies déjà, des rôles similaires dans le registre de la ( libre?) circulation des hommes et des femmes. Ces observateurs estiment en effet qu'en matière d'immigration clandestine, ces deux pays charnières constituent les passages obligés vers deux espèces de terres promises.
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GRASSROOTS
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 The Moroccan Community in the 10th Congressional district of Virginia is not happy about its congressman Frank Wolf's series of position regarding Morocco. The congressman has sided with the Polisario front and its backers and dismissed Morocco's Sahara autonomy plan and supported the referendum option championed by the Polisario.
“It is ironic that the congressman whose district includes a growing Moroccan American Community has staked an anti morocco position” said, Mr. Hassan Samrhouni
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GRASSROOTS
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 The United States of America affirmed its stance on the Sahara remains unchanged, making it clear that some form of mutually-accepted autonomy is the only realistic solution for this issue,The stance of the United States is written down in a statement that was delivered to the press, US State Department Spokesman, Sean McCormack said on Friday in response to a journalist's question on the Sahara issue
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NEWS
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 Morocco's Gnawa, heirs to a musical and spiritual tradition brought north across the Sahara centuries ago by black slaves, are enjoying new fame as their hypnotic rhythms hook listeners across the world.
The Gnawa brotherhoods have long scraped a living on the margins of Moroccan society by offering to restore health or good fortune through seances of trance and incantation.
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NEWS
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 Mohamed Erraji had written an article suggesting that some royal practices did not help the development of the country.
The appeals court in Agadir overturned the conviction and dropped all charges against Mr Erraji.
Morocco has allowed greater freedom of expression in recent years, but there are still limits on what can be said.
Mr Erraji's had originally been sent to prison for two years, and given a fine of 5,000 dirhams for lacking the respect due to the king.
A Moroccan appeals court Thursday granted provisional release to blogger Mohamed Erraji who was sentenced two years in jail for disparaging Moroccan King Mohammed VI, official MAP news agency reported.
The court of city of Agadir said the prosecution did not respect the procedures stipulated in the press code, the report said.
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DRISS TEMSAMANI
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 Can any one argue that today's Morocco under M6 is way different than the Morocco of his late father?
Is it just me or we are really under a lot of reforms in Morocco and no one is noticing? Now, could it be that we are so traumatized that the speed of of implementation of these reforms is just not good enough? Could it be that we want to change Morocco over night so that we can wake up tomorrow and all the moral decay, corruption and ignorance not to mention a generation that suffers from lack of self confidence and fear... is no more?
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ZAK ETTAMYMY
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 The real estate boom in Morocco that surprised even shocked many of us “Moroccans living abroad” is seen by many international firms dealing in real estate as a positive sign for a future shopping spree of the Europeans in the Moroccan market, they even compare it to the nineties boom in East Europe.
If you ask any Moroccan in the US or Europe, he/she will tell you that price has gone way too highead of urbanism in Morocco has been a phenomenon, of course not to be compared with Dubai, but it is a revolution in the living standards of the average Moroccan with positive and negative consequences.
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NEWS
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 The King of Morocco announced Saturday the main lines of a plan to reform the religious landscape in the country, specifically “the Higher Council of Ulemas” (Council of theologians), the imams (local preachers), mosques, and the religious affairs of the Moroccan community abroad.
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VIEWPOINT -
ADIL NAJI
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 The Sahara conflict has lasted for over 33 years. It is an issue of national identity and territorial integrity for Morocco. No one can deny that our neighbor Algeria, and its generals, is the main supporter of the Polisario. As a Moroccan-American living Virginia, I am concerned for the security of Morocco, and I support the Autonomy plan proposed by the Moroccan government for the Sahraoui people, a plan that keeps Morocco's sovereignty over its southern provinces and its territorial integrity intact.
I am asking all Americans, and particularly, the Moroccan-Americans to consider the following ...
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EVENTS
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MoroccoBoard TV will be taping another Community Town Hall Program at the White House Studios in Washington, DC on Saturday, 11th of October, at 2PM. The program will have a panel of experts, including representatives from MAC, and a community audience. The program is Live to tape.
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NEWS
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Boston University students will be able to study in Morocco and learn Arabic Language, Islamic and North African culture stating 2009.
Ms Leilani Olson , the International Programs Director suggested Morocco after a visit in 2007. "I set up contacts and met with language institutions there,"
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NEWS
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 Air Arabia announced, that it would establish a hub in Morocco’s capital Rabat, providing a platform to reach Europe, Africa and those parts of the Middle East beyond it’s reach in Sharjah. Air Arabia operates 15 Airbus A320 with 49 on order.
The low cost carrier Air Arabia’s launch of a hub in Morocco with a dedicated fleet of A320s is “very imminent”, according to the airline’s chief executive officer. |
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EVENTS
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In the city of Denver and at the same time as the Democratic convention, the Moroccan American Coalition, after a tense session, full with arguments, debates and suspense, where results were announced and voided to conduct another election and a recount, was officially born. It was tense, exciting and at the end, it resulted in an elected board that will take the rein of the Moroccan American Community's upcoming challenges.
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ZAK ETTAMYMY
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Do you remember the slogan “ca bouge a la tele” ? we all believed that finally a revolution was taking place within the bureaucratic institution of IDAA WA ATALVAZA, we truly believed that our national television was finally catching up with the world around us. We had hopes that the opinionated position of many international media groups has finally reached us, but then nothing moved, the only things that moved were the cheap furniture and cardboards, they moved them around in Studio Lebrihi, a real mockery of the Moroccan intelligence.
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JAMAL LAOUDI
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 For any nation to advance, it is essential that all its major players be involved with each focusing on its specialty. The government has the natural lion’s share of tasks and responsibilities. This includes providing peace and security, building the infrastructure, handling foreign affairs, etc.
The media has an equally crucial function. It serves as a medium to report news, as a platform for communication and interaction, among other functions. One of its most critical roles, however, is its attempts at keeping various players honest.
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NEWS
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The Moroccan Magazine "Tel Quel" has published an expanded report, written by reporter Sarah Tadlaoui, on the Moroccan American community, its relative importance, its perspectives and its differences from the Moroccan communities living in Europe...
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Officials from The U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) Headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany contacted MoroccoBoard to deny press reports on base location in Morocco.
