Statement from the Royal Cabinet

Here follows a statement from the Royal Cabinet:

“His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist Him, accompanied by HRH Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan, chaired on Saturday afternoon, September 9, 2023, at the Royal Palace in Rabat, a working session devoted to examining the situation following the painful earthquake that occurred on Friday, September 8, which caused heavy human and material losses in several regions of the Kingdom.

In this regard, the officials present outlined before His Majesty the King, may God preserve Him, the latest developments in the affected prefectures and provinces, particularly in some localities that were inaccessible during the night and where the situation could only be assessed and rescue operations launched at daybreak.

During this session, the officials present submitted to the High Royal Attention the details of the measures taken in order to deal rapidly with this major natural disaster.

These emergency measures, which were the subject of instructions from His Majesty the King and his constant monitoring since the first moments following the earthquake, and which saw the intervention of the Royal Armed Forces, local authorities, law enforcement agencies, and civil protection teams, as well as the ministerial departments concerned, essentially focused on: – Strengthening resources and search and rescue teams to speed up the rescue and evacuation of the injured, – Providing drinking water to the affected areas, – Distributing food rations, tents, and blankets to the disaster victims, – The rapid resumption of public services.

It should be noted in this regard that, pursuant to the High Instructions of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, Supreme Commander and Chief of General Staff of the Royal Armed Forces, the FAR urgently deployed significant human and logistical resources, both aerial and terrestrial, as well as specialized intervention units consisting of search and rescue teams, and a field medical-surgical hospital.

In this context, His Majesty the King gave his High Instructions in order to rapidly continue all rescue actions on the ground, and also to: – Immediately set up an inter-ministerial committee tasked with developing an emergency program to rehabilitate and provide support to rebuild destroyed homes in the affected areas as soon as possible. – Take care of people in difficult situations, especially orphans and vulnerable individuals. – Immediately take care of all people made homeless by the earthquake, particularly concerning accommodation, food, and all basic needs. – Encourage economic operators in order to rapidly resume activities in the concerned areas. – Open a special account with the Treasury and Bank Al-Maghrib to receive voluntary solidarity contributions from citizens and private and public bodies. – Fully mobilize the Mohammed V Foundation for Solidarity, with all its components, to provide support and assist citizens in the affected areas. – Constitute reserves and stockpiles of basic necessities (medicines, tents, beds, food, etc.) in every region of the Kingdom to face all types of disasters.

It was also decided to declare a three-day national mourning, with flags flown at half-mast on all public buildings.

On the other hand, His Majesty the King, Commander of the Faithful, gave his High Instructions to the Minister of Endowments and Islamic Affairs to perform the absentee prayer (Salat Al Ghaib) in all mosques of the Kingdom, for the repose of the souls of the victims of this natural disaster.

His Majesty the King also expressed the Kingdom of Morocco's sincere thanks to the many brotherly and friendly countries that expressed their solidarity with the Moroccan people in this situation, and many of which expressed their readiness to provide assistance in these exceptional circumstances.

This working session was attended by Mr. Aziz Akhannouch, Head of Government, Mr. Abdelouafi Laftit, Minister of the Interior, and Mr. Khalid Ait Taleb, Minister of Health and Social Protection.

Also present at this session were Lieutenant General Mohamed Berrid, Inspector General of the FAR and Commander of the Southern Zone, Lieutenant General Mohamed Haramou, Commander of the Royal Gendarmerie, Surgeon Major General Mohamed Elabbar, Inspector of the Military Health Service, Brigadier General Ihssane Lotfi, Director General of Civil Protection, Mr. Abdellatif Hammouchi, Director General of National Security and Territorial Surveillance, and Mr. Mohamed El Azami, Coordinator of the Mohammed V Foundation for Solidarity.”