Two people have been killed and hundreds more arrested in antigovernment protests in Morocco, the police said on Thursday, as youth-led demonstrations driven by growing anger over public services and allegations of corruption entered a sixth day.
The protests began after a loosely organized group known as Gen Z 212 took to social media to call for better schools, hospitals and for broader freedoms in the North African country. Demonstrators initially took to the streets in major cities including Rabat, the capital; and Casablanca, contrasting the millions that the government was spending to host the 2030 soccer World Cup with the dire state of public services. The protests soon spread to smaller cities and towns across Morocco.
The police said in a statement that they had been forced to act in self-defense after protesters tried to storm a police building and seize weapons.
Gen Z 212 said on social media that the killings amounted to “a serious human rights violation.”
The Moroccan Association of Human Rights, a nonprofit, said that the police had begun rounding up protesters before the violence erupted.
The demonstrations in Morocco are the latest in a string of youth-led protests that have taken place across the world in recent weeks. The protests do not appear to be connected, but they reflect growing anger among younger populations over allegedly corrupt governments and limited economic opportunities. The movements have taken off on social media platforms, tapping into shared anxieties and spurring people to take to the streets.
In Madagascar this week, youth-driven protests over poor power cuts and water shortages forced the president to dissolve his government. Days earlier, thousands of Filipinos filled the streets of Manila to protest their government, which they have accused of misappropriating billions of dollars designated for flood relief projects.
Last month, student protesters in Nepal who called themselves Gen Z started a movement against government graft and against a ban on social media platforms. And in August, mass demonstrations erupted in Indonesia over rising unemployment and inflation.
Despite being youth-led, the protests in Morocco have also attracted support from more established movements, including the Moroccan Association of Human Rights.
“The new generation, following what is happening in the world, has more courage and they have nothing to lose,” Soumaya Regragui, a member of the association said.
The Gen Z 212 group — the numbers refer to the country code of Morocco — vowed to continue protesting. A member of the group posted a poll to ask what should be the response to the killings: demonstrate in quieter neighborhoods to avoid clashes with security forces, protest peacefully from balconies and rooftops, or stay home and declare Thursday a day of mourning. Many decided to return to the streets.
Lynsey Chutel is a Times reporter based in London who covers breaking news in Africa, the Middle East and Europe.
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