Ouahbi: Addressing the situation of Moroccan women and children in both Iraq and Syria is quite complex

PAM Secretary General and current President of the Exploratory Mission in charge of Moroccan women and children trapped in Iraq and Syria, Abdellatif Ouahbi, stated that the aforementioned mission reflects the legal, historical and humanitarian commitment expressed by Morocco’s political parties.

“The issue in question is quite complicated for it relates to two sovereign countries, namely Iraq and Syria, thus, Morocco’s responsibility in this regard shall only be assumed from afar”, Ouahbi revealed, in a press conference held at the House of Representatives headquarters, stressing that the complex situation of Moroccan children in such areas has made it more difficult for the competent bodies to address this issue in particular, provided a series of nationality and illegal marriage factors.

Within the same context, Ouahbi indicated that many children live with fear due to the continuous bloodshed around them, claiming that their integration into society will be far from easy for they have gone through a series of tragedies.

“Integrating returnees into social life is not an easy task for we cannot tell for sure whether these returnees are still loyal to their jihadist beliefs or not, provided that some of them have actually re-joined terrorist groups upon their return to Morocco”, Ouahbi declared, noting that the authorities are therefore torn between the need to ensure people’s safety, and the obligation to bring back Moroccan subjects from hotbeds such as Iraq and Syria.