Morocco rules out granting asylum to Haitian president

The Moroccan government has ruled out granting asylum to Haitian President Jean Bertrand Aristide who fled his country in the face of rebellion.

A statement published Sunday by the ministry of foreign affairs and cooperation denied that Morocco has received an asylum request for the Haitian president.

Morocco, the statement added, "has received no asylum request" from Haiti and had "no information about the matter."

"The kingdom of Morocco has no intention of responding favorably to an eventual request for political asylum to President Aristide in Morocco," the statement concluded.

The Haitian President resigned in the face of an armed rebellion and strong international pressure from the United States and France.