VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHRB #0752/01 2491935
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
R 061935Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0632
INFO RUCNMGH/MAGHREB COLLECTIVE
RUEHDK/AMEMBASSY DAKAR 0510

S E C R E T RABAT 000752 
 
SIPDIS 
NOFORN 
 
DEPT FOR INL/AAE AND NEA/MAG 
MADRID AND PARIS ALSO FOR DEA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/02/2019 
TAGS: SNAR PINS PINR WADE KARIM MO SG
SUBJECT: MOROCCAN DRUG INTERDICTION: TWO STEPS FORWARD, ONE 
STEP BACK 
 
REF: RABAT 0486 (NOTAL) 
 
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires, a.i., 
Robert P. Jackson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶1.  (S/NF) Summary:  Since at least August 14, when according 
to Moroccan media police arrested 16 suspected drug barons in 
a major operation across the country, the press has been 
reporting regularly on some aspect of the GOM,s efforts to 
disrupt the drug trade and apprehend those suspected of 
involvement in it.  From reports of confiscation and 
eradication to implication of current or former high-ranking 
or elected officials, observers are treated to a steady diet 
of drug-related fare.  To date, between 110 and 140 tons of 
cannabis has been seized although some has reportedly made 
its way back to the streets.  With the Islamic holy month of 
Ramadan underway, one Moroccan likened this both to an 
exercise in "cleansing" and to a soap opera, remarking that 
every year during Ramadan it seems a scandal of some sort 
plays out in the papers.  Included in this one is the arrest 
of Senegalese Minister of State Karim Wade, son of Senegalese 
President Abdoulaye Wade.  With drugs center-stage this year, 
the scene is set for off-camera whispering and back-stage 
political expediency.  End summary. 
 
----------------- 
Two Steps Forward 
----------------- 
 
¶2.  (U) Citing a statement from the National Security Service 
(DGSN), Moroccan media reported that on August 14 police 
arrested 16 suspected drug barons in a major operation in 
several cities across the country.  Police seized a large 
quantity of hard drugs, as well as false documents, including 
identity papers and drivers' licenses.  They also impounded 
vehicles and other equipment.  A police source told one 
Moroccan daily that many of the arrests were made in the 
northern Tetouan and Nador regions of the country.  The 
source also said the investigation is expected to yield 
further information about what he called one of the biggest 
drug busts in Morocco this year. 
 
¶3.  (U) The action comes on the heels of a major operation 
earlier this year in which Moroccan police arrested more than 
100 persons, also in Nador.  Those arrests included police 
officers, gendarmes, sailors and soldiers.  A trial date has 
not been set, as the prosecution continues to develop the 
case.  The Public Prosecutor at the Casablanca Court stated 
on August 25 that criminal justice applies to all persons 
shown to be involved in drug trafficking, regardless of their 
title or position. 
 
-------------- 
And Maybe More 
-------------- 
 
¶4.  (U) Perhaps indicative of the assertion that there is no 
one outside the reach of the law, media on August 31 reported 
widely on the arrest of former Member of Parliament Mohammed 
Jouahi, considered by some to be among the biggest and most 
powerful of the drug barons.  Jouahi was, and may still be, a 
member of the centrist RNI party; some reports note the party 
leadership was quick to assert that he was no longer a 
member.  Further reports of an ongoing crackdown state that 
high-profile arrestees have implicated a number of security 
officers and attorneys in several areas of the country. 
Journalists have speculated that the current campaign against 
drug trafficking in the country has come on orders from the 
highest levels. 
 
--------------------- 
But One Step Backward 
--------------------- 
 
¶5.  (S/NF) If it is the highest levels that are directing the 
crackdown, they may be directing the outcome of drug 
interdiction effort as well.  It was reported in mid-August 
that a senior police official at the Casablanca airport was 
abruptly reassigned to a post with no responsibilities in 
Layounne, the Western Sahara.  The reasons given varied:  one 
paper stated it was because he had stopped a relative of an 
African leader who was carrying drugs; others claimed it was 
due to an unspecified series of professional mistakes, 
perhaps even a sexual scandal.  Intelligence reports confirm 
that it was the former, and that the relative stopped was the 
son of Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade.  The son, 
Senegalese Minister of State for International Cooperation, 
 
Land Use, Air Transport and Infrastructure Karim Wade, was 
apparently found in possession of hashish while passing 
through airport security.  King Mohammed VI, with whom Wade 
is a close friend, reportedly did not appreciate the actions 
of the local authorities who failed to inform him that Wade 
had been detained; so he reassigned two officials. 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶6.  (S/NF) While reports of the crackdown on the drug trade 
in Morocco suggest that authorities continue to focus on the 
problem, their efforts are not immune to politicization. 
Given that the younger Wade,s arrest could imperil relations 
between Morocco and Senegal, one can understand the King's 
pique at the Casablanca airport police.  Post reported reftel 
on the potential impact of drug eradication on voter 
participation in the June local elections; this latest 
incident suggests that, despite the king,s ongoing calls for 
judicial reform, apprehension for criminal offense, too, is 
subject to political expediency.  End comment. 
 
 
***************************************** 
Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; 
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Moro cco 
***************************************** 
 
Jackson