VZCZCXYZ3577
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHRB #0195 0631137
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 031137Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8213
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
RUEHCL/AMCONSUL CASABLANCA 3926

UNCLAS RABAT 000195 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL ASEC MO IS PA
SUBJECT: MOROCCANS SIMMERING OVER GAZA SITUATION 
 
¶1.  (SBU) The Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued on 
March 1 a strong and relatively unusual condemnation of the 
Israeli government for the IDF's military operations in Gaza. 
 The official Maghreb Arab Press (MAP) agency reported that 
the MFA "strongly denounced the 'horrible acts committed by 
the Israeli forces in Gaza against the civil population, 
mainly women and children.'"  The MFA also condemned the 
"unfair blockade imposed on the Palestinian population ... in 
breach of international conventions and human values."  MAP 
also reported that the MFA called upon all parties to 
"refrain from any reprisals that affect civilians, shatter 
hopes for peace, and breed violence." 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Images of the latest Gaza violence, particularly as 
carried by Al-Jazeera and other pan-Arab media, appear to 
have inflamed Moroccan public opinion.  Most coverage in the 
Moroccan press has been characterized by a tone of outrage. 
Patrons in a Rabat barbershop observed by PolOff on March 2 
were visibly agitated by images shown on Al-Jazeera as they 
waited for haircuts.  In the bazaar, sales of kafiyehs, the 
Palestinian headdress, have reportedly boomed. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Also on March 2, Abdelilah Benkirane, a leader of 
the Islamist Party of Justice and Development (PJD), and 
Khaled Sofiyani, chair of Morocco's Palestine Solidarity 
Committee, led a demonstration in Rabat of about 100 persons. 
 In remarks to the press, Sofiyani condemned what he called a 
"Zionist holocaust."  Benkirane slammed Arab governments for 
their inactivity in response to Israeli "aggression" and 
promised that this would be the first of a series of 
protests.  On February 29, Al-Adl Wal-Ihsane, (Justice and 
Spirituality) the large, unrecognized Islamist organization, 
organized a demonstration attended by hundreds Casablanca to 
condemn Israeli actions.  More demonstrations are in the 
works, some potentially targeted at Consulate General 
Casablanca or the Embassy, but we would expect the 
authorities will keep them well away. 
 
 
***************************************** 
Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/rabat 
***************************************** 
 
Riley