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Rabat – King Mohammed indirectly defied the Pegasus project’s allegations by renewing his unwavering trust in Morocco’s intelligence and security services, Jeune Afrique wrote this week in an analysis of the King’s latest speech.
In the past few months, claims accusing Morocco of illegitimate espionage made international headlines.
The claims emerged after Forbidden Stories, a consortium of 17 media organizations, published a report claiming that security services in Morocco used Israeli spyware Pegasus to target journalists, activists, senior politicians, and high-level foreign dignitaries like French president Emmanuel Macron.
Some reports went as far as accusing Moroccan intelligence of spying on King Mohammed VI.
Amid such allegations, King Mohammed VI said he has full trust in Morocco’s security services. And according
The King has not directly responded to the stories of illegitimate and indiscriminate use of malware by Moroccan intelligence.
However, he implicitly dismissed the charges of illegitimate spying being promoted by many media organizations when he expressed his heartfelt condolences to the head of theGeneral Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DGST-DGSN), Abdellatif Hammouchi after his mother passed away.
In his condolences message, the King lauded Hammouchi for his patriotism and his devotion to ensuring the security of Morocco and Moroccans.
“The best consolation after this death is that the deceased gave birth to virtuous men and women to whom she inculcated a good education based on noble virtues and the values of sincere patriotism and attachment to the constant values of the Nation and its sacralities,” the King said in his condolences letter.
For Jeune Afrique, the message is the closest thing to direct response, an explicit dismissal of all the series of accusations and that Morocco’s security services suffered in recent weeks at the hands of Amnesty International and the media organizations affiliated with Forbidden Stories.
King Mohammed VI’s message to Hammouchi was followed by a strongly-worded speech on the 68th anniversary of the Revolution of the King and People.
In the speech, the monarch spoke of a “full-fledged campaign to distort the image of our security institutions and undermine their usefulness and effectiveness in preserving Morocco’s security and stability.”
The King also emphasized that Morocco’ “institutions provide support and coordinate action at the regional and international levels, as acknowledged” by the international community and countries criticizing Rabat’s security efforts.
