Protests about Morocco's spending on World Cup over schools and hospitals spiral toward destruction

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RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Anti-government demonstrators in Morocco filled the streets for a fifth straight night, as protests over the state of public services once again descended into violence and destruction.

The demonstrations, organized by a leaderless movement dominated by internet-savvy youth, have taken the country by surprise and emerged as some of the country’s biggest in years. By midweek, they appeared to be spreading to new locations despite a lack of permits from authorities.

Those taking part in the so-called “Gen Z protests” decry what they see as widespread corruption. Through chants and posters, they have contrasted the flow of billions in investment toward preparation for the 2030 World Cup, while many schools and hospitals lack funds and remain in a dire state.

But chants were fewer as violence broke out in several cities on Wednesday evening, following days of mass arrests in more than a dozen cities, particularly in places where jobs are scarce and social services lacking.

In Sale, the poorer city just across the river from Morocco’s capital, an Associated Press reporter saw hundreds of masked youth — mostly teenagers — torching cars, banks and shops, smashing windows and looting, with no police in sight.

The chaos came despite warnings from authorities, political parties in government and the opposition and the organizers themselves. In a statement published on Discord, the Gen Z 212 protest movement earlier on Wednesday implored protesters to remain peaceful and blasted “repressive security approaches.”

“The right to health, education and a dignified life is not an empty slogan but a serious demand,” the organizers of the Gen Z 212 protest movement wrote in a statement published on Discord.

Still, the protests have escalated and become more destructive on Tuesday and Wednesday, particularly in cities far from where development efforts have been concentrated in Morocco. Local outlets and footage filmed by witnesses on Tuesday show protesters hurling rocks and setting vehicles ablaze in cities and towns in the country's east and south, including in Inzegane and Ait Amira.

In Oujda, eastern Morocco’s largest city, a police vehicle that rammed into demonstrators in Morocco left one person injured, local human rights groups and the state news agency MAP said.

In its first public statement since the start of the protests on Saturday, Morocco’s Interior Ministry said the anonymously organized demonstrations lacked authorization and were dealt with according to the law, noting that those found to be breaking it would be treated “rigorously and firmly.” It said 409 people were taken into police custody.

Additionally, 263 members of law enforcement were injured during the nationwide protests that also damaged 142 of their vehicles. Twenty private cars also were damaged and 23 civilians were injured, the ministry said.

Oujda's chapter of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH) said that 37 protesters arrested in the city on Monday, among them six minors, would appear in court on Wednesday.

They're among the more than a thousand that AMDH said have been apprehended, including many whose arrests were shown on video by local media and some who were detained by plainclothes officers during live television interviews.

“With protests scheduled to continue, we urge authorities to engage with the legitimate demands of the youth for their social, economic, and cultural rights and to address their concerns about corruption,” Amnesty International’s regional office said on Tuesday.

The “Gen Z” protests mirror similar unrest sweeping countries like Nepal and Madagascar. In some of Morocco's largest anti-government protests in years, the movement has harnessed anger about conditions in hospitals and schools to express outrage over the government’s spending priorities.

Pointing to new stadiums under construction or renovation across the country, protesters have chanted, “Stadiums are here, but where are the hospitals?” and alleged rampant corruption at everyday people's expense. Additionally, the recent deaths of eight women in public hospital in Agadir have become a rallying cry against the decline of Morocco’s health system.

As Morocco prepares to host soccer's Africa Cup of Nations later this year and politicians gear up for parliamentary elections in 2026, the link has drawn attention to how deep disparities endure in the North African Kingdom. Despite rapid development according to some metrics, many Moroccans feel disillusioned by its unevenness, with regional inequities, the state of public services and lack of opportunity, particularly for youth, fueling discontent.

The movement, which originated on platforms like TikTok and Discord popular among gamers and teenagers, has won additional outpourings of support on social media since authorities began arresting people over the weekend, including from Morocco's star goalkeeper Yassine Bounou and its most famous rapper El Grande Toto.

Officials have denied prioritizing World Cup spending over public infrastructure, saying problems facing the health sector were inherited from previous governments. In Morocco’s parliament, the governing majority said it would meet on Thursday to discuss healthcare and hospital reforms as part of a meeting headed by Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch. __ Mosa'ab Elshamy contributed reporting from Sale, Morocco.