While the death toll from the earthquake now exceeds 1,000, Algeria has, in turn, offered assistance to its neighbor, announcing, in particular, its decision to reopen its airspace to planes transporting humanitarian aid or the injured.
The human toll of the earthquake which struck Morocco during the night from Friday to Saturday continues to increase. At the start of the afternoon, the authorities put forward the figure of 1,037 dead and 1,204 injured “including 721 in critical condition”. It also appears that many people are still trapped under the rubble.
The province of Al Haouz is, at this time, the most affected, but that of Taroudant also has several hundred victims, and deaths have been recorded in the provinces of Chichaoua, Azilal, Youssoufia, and Ouarzazate, as well as in the prefectures of Marrakech, Agadir, and Casablanca. On royal instructions, the Royal Armed Forces (FAR) were urgently deployed.
Faced with the scale of the tragedy, international reactions are multiplying, with heads of state from around the world presenting their condolences to Morocco and, many of them, offering assistance to help the victims.
The Algerian neighbor, whose relations with the kingdom are currently very tense, expressed his sadness and offered his condolences through a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Presidency of the Republic then published a press release in which the Algiers authorities expressed their “full availability to provide humanitarian aid and to deploy all material and human capacities in solidarity with the brotherly Moroccan people, in case of Morocco’s request”.
Algiers also announced its decision to “reopen its airspace to flights to transport humanitarian aid and the wounded”. This space had been closed to Moroccan aircraft, both civilian and military, since September 2021, following the Algerian decision to sever diplomatic relations with Morocco.
