UNREST IN MOROCCO

Press, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 26362, 5 March 1951, Page 7

UNREST IN MOROCCO

Egypt Said To Be Concerned

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) (Rec. 10 pmJ CAIRO, March 3. Egypt haa asked far a meeting of the Arab Leagne’s Political Committee to consider the latest devetepmente in Morocco. The Egyptian Prime Minister (Nahaa Pasha) la reported to be greatly concerned over the sitoation. Ahmed Shukelry, assistant secretarygeneral of the Arab League, commenttog on toe Moroccan situation, said: “The imperialists have gone from all

Asia. It is Africa’s turn now. It is time for every , free man to say, ‘Leave Morocco to the Moroccans and Africa to the Africans.”

Ahmed Shukeiry accused France of violating the 1912 protectorate treaty by opposing the policy of the Sultan of Morocco. He appealed to democratic countries to intervene in a question which might provoke disturbances in all Africa. Steel-helmeted police with tommyguns guarded the approaches to the French Embassy in Cairo, and the Institutes in Cairo and Alexandria, when hundreds of Egyptian students demonstrated in protest over recent events in Morocco.

The students, who had gathered in various districts of Cairo in defiance of a Government ban on demonstrations, marched to the Arab League headquarters and called on the sec-retary-general to lead an Arab revolt against “imperialists.”

Report of lighting The Committee for the Freedom of North Africa announced in New York that it had received word of a bloody battle between French colonial troops and Arab Nationalists in French Morocco yesterday. The committee produced a telegram signed by Allal al Fassi, president of the Moroccan Nationalist Party. It said: “The situation has deteriorated. Rabat is occupied by troops and a column of tanks. The Palace is surrounded and all cities are encircled Fez tr ° 0PS ’ partlcularl y Menknes and

There have been bloody battles at Tadla Ksiba, where the troops fired on the civilian population. Many are dead and wounded. General Latour has arrived on the scene.” The committee said that General .Resident-General in North Africa, had ordered the arrest yesterday of all members of the Executive Committee of the Nationalist Party. This was accompanied by a round-up of 5200 members and syrnSathisers of the party and it brought ie number of Nationalists imprisoned in the last three weeks to 35,000.