First Independent Mena Newspaper
Morocco’s Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs has allocated 105 million dirhams ($11 million) to support 18 associations managing Islamic centers in Europe and Canada, strengthening religious guidance for Moroccan diaspora communities. Minister Ahmed Toufiq announced the funding Monday while addressing the House of Representatives regarding support for Islamic centers serving Moroccans residing abroad and […]
The European Union issued more than 606,000 visas to Moroccan citizens in 2024, marking a significant increase and reflecting a notable improvement in diplomatic relations between Morocco and its European partners, Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said. In a written response to a parliamentary question regarding visa reciprocity, Bourita emphasized that Morocco’s approach to visa […]
In a bold stride toward digital integration and technological advancement, Libya has inaugurated on May 11 the Medusa submarine cable project—an 8,700-kilometre undersea lifeline linking the North African nation directly to Europe. Spearheaded by the Libyan Post, Telecommunications and Information Technology Company (LPTIC), the initiative is being lauded as a transformative step in positioning Libya […]
Several European countries are considering the closing of the Polisario representations amid mounting reports sounding the alarm over the Algeria-backed militias’ ties with terrorist groups in the Sahel and the Middle East. According to European security sources cited by Paris-based news outlet Sahel Intelligence, investigations conducted by European intelligence services showed financial and logistical connections […]
A 25% decline in the number of migrants departing from Libya to Europe during the first quarter of 2025 was reported by the Mixed Migration Centre, an entity affiliated with the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Approximately 9,168 migrants were said to have arrived in Italy between January and March 2025, with 93%—around 8,500 individuals—reported […]
An increasingly broad international consensus is emerging across the globe for including the Algeria-backed polisario militias in the U.S. terror black list. Several influential politicians, Associate professors and analysts from Europe, Latin American, the United States…have backed the findings of the recent report published by U.S. Hudson Institute urging the Trump administration to designate the […]
The Moroccan Foreign minister has met this week peers from Moldova, Estonia, Croatia, Hungary, and Spain as part of a European visit that highlighted the growing momentum in favor of the autonomy plan as a sole solution to the Sahara issue. In Spain, the former colonial power in the territory, foreign minister Albares reiterated, following […]
In recent years, the Gulf monarchies have pivoted towards a more geo-economic strategy in Africa, diversifying their engagements from security and political interests to economic development, says a new report by the European Council on Foreign Relation (ECFR), noting that the Gulf expansion could also exacerbate the ongoing decline in European involvement in the continent. […]
Germany has pledged to donate 100,000 doses of the Money Pox (mpox) vaccines to Africa, after France and Austria made similar commitments last week and as the continent is to belatedly receive 10,000 shots in the coming days amid criticism of delays caused by the World Health Organization’s (WTO) red tape. The first batch of […]
Over $30 billion worth of gold was smuggled out of Africa in 2022, primarily to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Turkey, and Switzerland, according to a new ground-breaking report by Swissaid that calls for more transparency and traceability in the gold supply chain to improve local conditions and artisanal miners’ working conditions throughout the continent. […]