Morocco protests resume as youth demand health and education funding

Thousands of young Moroccans returned to the streets on Thursday in a renewed wave of demonstrations centered in Rabat, Casablanca and Tangier, pressing for greater investment in health and education, measures against corruption and, in some cases, the dismissal of Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch. The protests, led by the loose-knit Gen Z 212 movement, resumed after a brief midweek pause timed to precede King Mohammed VI's address to parliament on Friday.

Organizers and participants said the movement began in late September after the deaths of several women in a public hospital in Agadir and has since broadened to demand systemic reforms. Demonstrators used social media platforms including TikTok and Discord to coordinate rallies across more than a dozen cities, and the movement released an open letter to the king asking him to dismiss the government, release people detained during protests and convene a national forum to investigate corruption. Gen Z 212 said it seeks to prioritize state spending on healthcare and education over large infrastructure projects.

The demonstrations have been largely peaceful in recent days, though earlier clashes with security forces resulted in...