Iran Welcomes Resumption of Diplomatic Ties with Morocco

MT — Fri, 30 Jun 2023 19:45:05 +0000

Hossein Amir Abdollahian, the foreign minister of Iran, reaffirmed his nation’s willingness to reestablish diplomatic ties with Morocco and stressed the significance of promoting cordial relations amongst Muslim nations.

Including the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Muslim-friendly nation of Morocco, Abdollahian remarked, “We also welcome the development of relations and the normalization of ties with other regional and global Islamic countries.”

According to a report from Tehran Times on Thursday, the minister made the remarks during an address to ambassadors from Muslim nations on the occasion of Eid Al-Adha, a Muslim holiday also known as the Feast of Sacrifice in English.

Abdollahian emphasized the readiness of his nation to advance friendly relations with Muslim nations, give top priority to Islamic unity, and deal with local and international problems that have an effect on the Islamic world, such as the Palestinian cause and the Sudanese conflict.

Morocco severed diplomatic ties with Iran in May 2018 after accusing Iranian proxy Hezbollah of providing training and weapons to Polisario, a separatist movement that sought independence for Western Sahara and posed a threat to Morocco’s territorial integrity.

Iran and Polisario both refuted the allegations, but the Moroccan government offered proof that Hezbollah and the separatist front had collaborated.

Details of top Hezbollah operatives’ trips to Algeria, their interactions with Polisario representatives, and a list of those involved in these connections were included in the evidence.

Nasser Bourita, Morocco’s minister of foreign affairs, stated in an interview from 2018: “The file was carefully prepared, for weeks, on the basis of information gathered and cross-checked over several months.”

Morocco and Iran’s diplomatic connections were severed as a result of the charges that damaged their relationship.

In an interview with Independent Arabia from last year, Bourita highlighted that Morocco wants to have ties based on mutual respect and urged Iran to stop meddling in its neighbor’s domestic affairs and stop funding armed separatist organisations.

“Morocco has no enmity with Iran, we want relations of mutual respect and that Tehran no longer supports armed separatist groups,” he said.

The post Iran Welcomes Resumption of Diplomatic Ties with Morocco appeared first on Morocco Telegraph.

German newspaper sheds light on the ‘Polisario’ money laundering and terrorism scandal

MT — Tue, 07 Feb 2023 17:40:15 +0000

Berlin – The ”polisario” is at the heart of a money laundering scandal and an obscure terrorist financing network operated in Europe with the complicity of Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Shiite group, reveals the German newspaper “Die Welt”.

The daily highlights recent large-scale financial deals and transactions between the “polisario” militia and a Hezbollah network specializing in money laundering through the “Hawala” system, which transfers money through an unofficial clearing mechanism between exchange nodes, citing financial investigations, reports from the Spanish Civil Guard, and terrorism experts.

Hezbollah transfers value to its criminal clients by purchasing and selling goods using conventional money laundering methods after the dirty money has been introduced into the legal financial system, according to the publication.

Several European nations, including Germany, Belgium, France, and Great Britain, as well as the Gulf States and the Tindouf camps run by the “polisario” in southern Algeria were allegedly the target of illegal money transfers, according to “Die Welt.”

Ahmed A. and his partner Azman, two agents and frontline courtiers, established the “Hawala” business network of the “polisario” in Tindouf. Ahmed A. bragged about his ability to send up to 50,000 euros at any time, anywhere. According to reports from the Guardia Civil’s financial department, he claims he will be able to make even larger transfers,” Die Welt notes.

“Ahmed A., a Libyan-born Spaniard who attended school there, specializes in sending illicit funds from Europe to West Africa and vice versa. He is based in Spain along with his colleagues. They have strong ties to Algerian generals, the source continues, adding that “the two Hawala brokers of the “polisario” opened butcher shops, food and computer stores, as well as private accounts in several European banks where their customers can transfer money in order to conceal their illegal financial activities.”

The revelations confirm the affiliation between the “polisario” and Hezbollah, alarming terrorism experts and global counterterrorism organizations, while Iran, a state sponsor of terrorism, is increasing its influence in West Africa, the daily reports.

The German newspaper emphasizes that Hezbollah has set up a training facility in the Tindouf camps for “polisario” fighters with the approval of the ruling Algerian junta, while the Tehran regime has provided the “polisario” militia with missiles and drones, endangering regional stability.

The post German newspaper sheds light on the ‘Polisario’ money laundering and terrorism scandal appeared first on Morocco Telegraph.

Hezbollah Archives | Morocco Telegraph

Iran Welcomes Resumption of Diplomatic Ties with Morocco

German newspaper sheds light on the ‘Polisario’ money laundering and terrorism scandal