Strike on Iraq prompts concern of Moroccan government and angry reaction among Moroccans

Morocco expressed "great concern" following U.S.-British military raids against the brotherly Iraq, which claimed lives of innocent people.

The Moroccan ministry of foreign affairs and cooperation said, in a release Friday, "the Kingdom of Morocco, which is following closely developments of the situation between Iraq and the UN special commission, calls for restraint and for giving a chance to international peaceful mediation."

The Moroccan government deems that "mediations are the only means to find lasting solutions securing the implementation of the security council resolutions, Iraq's territorial integrity and unity, and the Iraqi people's hope to get rid of a long lasting embargo."

The Moroccan political class promptly voiced negative reactions to these attacks and accused Clinton of bombing Baghdad to divert attention from the impending impeachment vote in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The leader of the nationalist "Istiqlal party," represented in the government, denounced "the coward aggression," expressing the party's total support with Iraqis. Meanwhile, the party's youth section, which was holding its congress in Rabat condemned on Thursday the aggression and called Washington to "immediately end the aggression" and urged the United Nations to "put an end to the US arrogance."

Six opposition parties held a joint meeting of their leaders and condemned the bombing as "a serious precedent in contradiction with UN security council laws" that stipulate that decisions must be taken unanimously by its five permanent member-countries. The parties also called for "an immediate end to the unfair aggression" and urged the government to respond to the feelings of Moroccans by supporting the Iraqi people and to hold an extraordinary session of the parliament in solidarity with Iraq.

University and high school students, supported by teachers, in several cities staged rallies to express support with the Iraqi people and denounce the raids as a "violation of international laws and conventions."

For the socialist lawyers, affiliated to the Socialist Union of Popular Forces, whose leader Abderrahmane Youssoufi is heading the coalition-government, governments of arab and islamic countries should interfere to face this "insolent terrorism," by unilaterally lifting the sanctions facing Iraq.

They called the US-British raids "an odious crime against humanity" and said US president Bill Clinton is only trying to hide his personal scandals. They further argued that the one that deserves international punishment for defying international law is the zionist entity which owns nuclear, chemical and criminal weapons."

The "CDT," a trade union close to the "USFP," called its regional and local sections to hold sit-ins starting this Friday, terming the strikes "aggression acts against the arab and islamic nation" and "a barbarous crime against humanity."

A group of politicians, intellectuals and trade unionists, gathered in the Moroccan committee of support to Iraq, expresses total support to Iraq in this hardship and invites arab countries to adopt "a firm position against the aggression" and "proclaim an economic boycott against the aggressors."

Moroccan papers all agreed that the timing of the raid is not fortuitous as the Senate was getting ready to vote the impeachment of Clinton. A leftist daily "Liberation" warns that the USA is igniting "fanaticism" and "pouring on the planet a torrent of injustice, despair and hatred."

Thousands of Moroccans had participated in 1991 in a march to support the Iraqi people, led by leaders of the then opposition parties.