RABAT: Morocco announced on Wednesday it would buy up to 168 trains from Spain’s CAF, South Korea’s Hyundai and France’s Alstom for $2.9 billion as part of preparations for the 2030 FIFA World Cup it is co-hosting with Spain and Portugal.
The National Railway Office (ONCF) said in a statement that it had awarded the contracts for the “new train acquisition program, with a total cost of 29 billion dirhams, as part of the development plan for 2030.”
They include 18 high-speed trains from Alstom, sealing a deal first mentioned during French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Rabat in October.
Morocco already has one 350-kilometer (220-mile) high-speed railway line between the coastal cities of Tangier and Casablanca, and is planning a second that will extend 400 kilometers (250 miles) from Kenitra on the coast to Marrakech in the interior.
The first line, built by Alstom, has been in operation since 2018.
The contract with Spain’s CAF is for 30 intercity trains with an option for a further 10, while the deal with Hyundai Rotem is for 110 commuter trains.
The ONCF said the purchases aimed to contribute to “the successful joint organization of the 2030 FIFA World Cup.”
It said it also aimed to develop the domestic railway industry, with a local factory for commuter trains and “the ambition to export trains in the medium and long term.”
Morocco announces $2.9 billion deal for French, Spanish and South Korean trains
https://arab.news/zyca3
Morocco announces $2.9 billion deal for French, Spanish and South Korean trains
- They include 18 high-speed trains from Alstom
- The ONCF said the purchases aimed to contribute to “the successful joint organization of the 2030 FIFA World Cup“
Katz orders West Bank raid after deadly attack in Israel
- Friday’s stabbing and car-ramming attack in northern Israel triggered the minister’s action
JERUSALEM: Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz on Friday ordered the military to launch an operation in the village of Qabatiya in the occupied West Bank after it emerged that a Palestinian who killed two people came from there.
The minister instructed the Israeli forces to “act forcefully and immediately against the village of Qabatiya, from which the murderous terrorist emerged, in order to locate and thwart every terrorist and strike the village’s terror infrastructure,” Katz’s office said in a statement.
“Anyone who aids terrorism or sponsors and backs it will pay the full price,” it added.
BACKGROUND
Friday’s attack comes just days after Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian teenager in the Qabatiya area.
The military said in a separate statement that it was preparing to begin an operation in Qabatiya in the northern West Bank, which has seen repeated violent incidents.
Friday’s stabbing and car-ramming attack in northern Israel triggered the minister’s action.
The assault came a day after an Israeli military reservist dressed in civilian clothes rammed his vehicle into a Palestinian man in the West Bank, where violence has surged since the war in Gaza began.
“Preliminary investigation indicates this was a rolling terror attack that began in the city of Beit Shean, where a pedestrian was run over,” Israeli police said in a statement about Friday’s attack, adding that the victim was a 68-year-old man.
“Later, a young woman was stabbed near Road 71, and the suspect was ultimately engaged with gunfire near Maonot Junction in Afula following intervention by a civilian bystander,” it said, adding that the attacker was taken to hospital.
Both victims succumbed to the injuries, Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency services said in a statement.
MDA also reported that a 16-year-old was slightly injured when “hit by a vehicle.
The Israeli military said the attacker had “infiltrated into Israeli territory several days ago.”
President Isaac Herzog condemned the attack.
Friday’s attack comes just days after Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian teenager in the Qabatiya area.
The military has launched an investigation into the incident after footage emerged showing the teenager not posing any threat or throwing anything at soldiers who shot him.
The attack on Friday also came a day after an Israeli military reservist dressed in civilian clothes rammed his vehicle into a Palestinian man in the
West Bank.
In videos on social media purporting to show that incident, the victim is seen praying by the roadside when the soldier rams him with his vehicle.
