• Source:JND
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Morocco is preparing for a sixth straight night of demonstrations following rage at corruption, joblessness, and government expenditure fueled into violent confrontations with police. Three people have been killed since protesters first took to the streets last weekend, the most violent youth-driven rebellion the nation has witnessed in years. 

Two protesters were confirmed shot dead late Wednesday in the Lqliaa town, close to Agadir, when security personnel opened fire. The officials indicated that protesters had tried storming a police station, destroying part of the building and a car on fire while attempting to lay their hands on arms. Police first deployed tear gas before escalating to guns in what they termed self-defense. A third fatality was announced on Thursday but details are still sketchy.

These are the first deaths since the protests broke out on Saturday, triggered by an outcry over government plans to construct FIFA World Cup 2030 stadiums rather than invest in struggling hospitals and schools. "Stadiums are here, but where are the hospitals?" has become the protesters' rallying cry.

Gen Z 212: A Leaderless, Digital Movement

At the center of the turmoil is Gen Z 212, a leaderless youth movement whose title alludes to Morocco's international dialing code. Unlike previous waves of protests like the February 20 Movement in the Arab Spring, Gen Z 212 is intentionally leaderless with no connections to political parties or organised activist networks.

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The movement is coordinated almost entirely online, using TikTok, Instagram, and Discord to organise supporters. Membership in its Discord server has grown from 3,000 to more than 130,000 in a single week, highlighting its fast-growing impact. Protesters frequently employ anime characters and gaming aliases to conceal their identities, with numerous participants apparently inexperienced and even filmed breaking down in tears as police arrested them.

Economic Strain And Public Anger

Morocco's official unemployment rate is 12.8 percent, but youth unemployment is almost 36 percent, with nearly one in five university graduates in employment. Public services, particularly healthcare, are under extreme pressure. Protesters cite the deaths of eight pregnant women in Agadir’s hospital earlier this year as emblematic of systemic failures.

The anger deepened after the government allocated billions for World Cup stadium projects, which many view as neglecting urgent social needs. As one demonstrator put it: “We don’t need stadiums; we need hospitals.” 

Protests swept the country, from Rabat to Casablanca, Tangier, Marrakesh, and Oujda. Some of them became violent, with eyewitness accounts of police cars plowing into protesters, police stations being attacked by fire, and hooded youths burning vehicles and breaking into banks.

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The Interior Ministry accounted for 409 arrests, 263 police injuries, and damage to 142 police vehicles. Officials have pledged to protect the right to peaceful protest but have indicated that unauthorised protests will be responded to with "rigorous and firm" action.