Iran Press/Middle East: Moroccan officials say they are no longer a member of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, and the country has recalled its ambassador to Saudi Arabia. Morocco says it won't take part in Saudi military actions in Yemen.
According to a report by the Washington Post, tensions have been mounting between Morocco and Saudi Arabia, amid international concerns about Saudi actions in the Yemen war and other issues.
A Moroccan government official said Thursday that Morocco no longer takes part in military interventions or ministerial meetings in the Saudi-led coalition.
The official didn’t elaborate. Morocco’s government has not divulged details of its military’s participation in the coalition, which has been at war in Yemen against the Houthis since 2015. The war has killed thousands of Yemeni civilians and displaced over 3 million people.
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Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita in an interview with Al-Jazeera last month confirmed that Morocco’s participation in the Yemen war had changed.
Bourita also hinted that Rabat had serious reservations about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s recent tour of other Arab countries, amid international condemnation of the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Embassy in Istanbul.
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Khashoggi, 59, an outspoken critic of Mohammed bin Salman, disappeared after he entered the Saudi diplomatic mission in the Turkish city on October 2 to complete some paperwork for his forthcoming marriage.
According to one of the sources, Morocco declined to host the Saudi crown prince in an unusual snub, citing the Moroccan king’s busy agenda.
It is also true that after Bourita's interview, Saudi television channel Al-Arabiya aired a documentary on disputed Western Sahara, supporting claims that Morocco invaded it after Spanish colonizers left in 1975. Morocco considers Western Sahara its southern territories.
Morocco recalled its ambassador to Saudi Arabia for consultations after the report aired, according to another Moroccan government official. 103/211/207
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