RABAT: Morocco, struggling with an influx of African migrants seeking passage to nearby Europe, on Thursday imposed a new rule requiring such travelers to fill out an online travel form for approval at least 96 hours before leaving home.
The procedure on a website carrying the Moroccan Foreign Ministry logo applies to a range of African countries whose citizens currently can enter Morocco without visas, except for Algeria and Tunisia.
The North African country has been grappling with a surge in migrants, arriving mainly on flights into Casablanca. Many intend to get into Europe and claim asylum by taking boats across a narrow Mediterranean strait to Spain, or scaling fences into the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta or Melilla bordering Morocco.
The new procedure “aims to facilitate passenger traffic ... It will help Moroccan authorities know in advance the identity of travelers before boarding (planes),” reads a document issued by Morocco’s embassy in Mali and seen by Reuters.
Morocco has come under European Union pressure to reduce crossings of illegal migrants to Spain and wants Rabat to set up “disembarkation platforms” — centers where migrants’ asylum applications would be processed. Morocco has rejected the idea.
In Africa, Morocco offers visa-free entry to the nationals of Algeria, Tunisia, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Guinea Conakry, Congo Brazzaville, Gabon and Ivory Coast.
The new travel regulation took effect on Thursday for citizens of Congo Brazzaville, Guinea Conakry and Mali, according to a document from the Moroccan airline RAM.
Mali, Guinea and to a lesser extent Congolese nationals comprise the bulk of Europe-bound migrants coming to Morocco.
More than 40,000 African migrants have reached Spain’s southern Andalucia coast by sea from Morocco since January.
Morocco imposes online entry permit rule for African travelers
Morocco imposes online entry permit rule for African travelers
- The procedure applies to a range of African countries whose citizens currently can enter Morocco without visas
- Morocco has been grappling with a surge in migrants, arriving mainly on flights into Casablanca
Israel launches ‘large scale operation’ to locate last hostage in Gaza
- The return of the remaining hostage, Ran Gvili, has been widely seen as removing the remaining obstacle to moving ahead with opening the Rafah crossing, which would signal the ceasefire’s second phase
NAHARIYA, Israel: Israel said Sunday its military was conducting a “large-scale operation” to locate the last hostage in Gaza, as Washington and other mediators pressure Israel and Hamas to move into the next phase of their ceasefire.
The statement came as Israel’s Cabinet met to discuss the possibility of opening Gaza’s key Rafah border crossing with Egypt, and a day after top US envoys met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about next steps.
The return of the remaining hostage, Ran Gvili, has been widely seen as removing the remaining obstacle to moving ahead with opening the Rafah crossing, which would signal the ceasefire’s second phase.
The return of all remaining hostages, alive or dead, has been a central part of the first phase of the ceasefire that took effect on Oct. 10. Before Sunday, the previous hostage was recovered in early December.
While Israel has carried out search efforts before for Gvili, more detail than usual was released about this one. Israel’s military said it was searching a cemetery in northern Gaza near the Yellow Line, which marks off Israeli-controlled parts of the territory.
Separately, an Israeli military official said Gvili may have been buried in the Shujaiyya–Daraj Tuffah area, and that rabbis and dental experts were on the ground with specialized search teams. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were discussing an operation still under way.
Gvili’s family has urged Netanyahu’s government not to enter the ceasefire’s second phase until his remains are returned.
But pressure has been building, and the Trump administration has already declared in recent days that the second phase is under way.
Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of dragging its feet in the recovery of the final hostage. Hamas in a statement Sunday said it had provided all the information it had about Gvili’s remains, and accused Israel of obstructing efforts to search for them in areas of Gaza under Israeli military control.
