Rumsfeld greeted by protests.

I remember sitting with a group of men in Chefchaouen during the American massacre in Fallujah. We sat in horror and silence, the men openly weeping as we watched the TV images before us. One of the men turned to me and put into words what we were all thinking - "Why?"

Given all the "shock and awe", Abu Graib, and the concentration camp at Guantanamo - it would have been very strange if Don Rumseld had been welcomed to Morocco with open arms. There can be few Moroccans who do not have grave concerns over the US war in Iraq and Afghanistan. So it was little surprise the protesters were out in Rabat to greet him.

The protest, which was organized by the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH), brought together Moroccan intellectuals and lawyers. The demonstrators held slogans denouncing US Defense Secretary Rumsfeld's visit, the US led-war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Morocco's security and military cooperation with the United States.

The other side of this equation also needs to be remembered. Morocco has had a very long term friendship with the United States which will survive the negativities of the Bush administration. As a strong US ally in the region, Morocco has clamped down on suspected cells of Islamic radicals since 2003, when multiple bombings in the country's business capital Casablanca killed 45 people and shocked the normally peaceful country.

At his arrival to the Rabat-Sale airport, Rumsfeld was greeted by the Foreign Minister, Mohammed Benaassa. The US official will head to the Middle-Atlas to meet the King Mohammed VI today in Ifran.

The visit comes after Sunday's meeting with Algerian senior government leaders and visited Tunisia on Saturday where he toured the North Africa American Cemetery and laid a wreath in honor of the 2,841 US servicemen buried near the ancient city of Carthage on the Mediterranean Coast.

Rumsfeld praised Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco for their role in combating terrorism and hoped to strengthen the cooperation with the three countries in this field.

Rumsfeld is visiting Morocco for the fourth time. In an exclusive interview with Groupe Maroc Soir, Rumsfeld said he will be meeting with several Moroccan leaders to discuss issues of common interest.

These will include Morocco's leadership in international peacekeeping and counter-terrorism efforts, ongoing and potential threats to security and stability in North Africa and the Middle East, and the strong military-to-military relationship between our two countries.

Rumsfeld said that NATO and the Maghreb countries share concerns about security and stability threats to the North African region including terrorism, narcotics trafficking, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

"That is why it is important to continue to improve our ability to communicate and work with each other," stressed the Defense Secretary.

Rumsfeld's visit followed that of the FBI director Robert Mueller who paid a two-day visit to Morocco this week.

Discussing security cooperation, the FBI head also said that the US and Maghreb countries have to work closely together to exchange information to prevent attacks and criminals from preying on our people. "“Therefore, associations and friendships between our countries are exceptionally important," Mueller told Morocco Times.

Mueller also met with his Moroccan security counterpart and discussed ways in which they continue to cooperate together in the area of exchanging expertise on fingerprints, fingerprint databases, on giving assistance and developing a DNA database structure so that in the future they can exchange these forensic tools and be able to address these terrorism threats.

Rumsfield's visit coincides with the handing over to the Moroccan authorities of three Moroccans, formerly detained in the American Base in Guantanamo Bay. Najib Lahssini, Mohamed Souleimani Laalami and Mohamed Ouali are now under the supervision of the General Prosecutor of Casablanca.

Interview with Rumsfeld in Morocco is here: Morocco Times

ANOTHER VISITOR.

Spring must be in the air, for all the big boys are visiting Morocco. Next in the queue for a little Maghrabian hospitality is the British Foreign Minister, Jack Straw, who will pay his first official visit to Morocco on Monday.

Jack Straw's visit is also not without controversy. It comes at the same time as the world is reacting in anger to the sickening video of a group of British soldiers assaulting a group of young Iraqi teenagers in Basra. The video was being played around British army bases as "a bit of fun".

On the video the soldiers chase the Iraqis, catch and drag them through a gate into a fenced in areas. The defenceless teens are then pulled to the ground and beaten by at least five British soldiers with batons and fists. One of the victims has his shirt ripped off and another group of soldiers drag in another civilian and beating him with wooden batons.

The Foreign Secretary is also expected to meet foreign Minister, Mohammed Benaassa to discuss regional and bilateral issues.

Jack Straw is very upbeat about his visit. "I am very much looking forward to visiting Morocco, my first and the first in 23 years by a British Foreign Secretary. My audience with His Majesty King Mohammed VI and his ministers will allow me to reinforce the already healthy bilateral relationship we enjoy. Our exchanges on a great many issues, both bilateral and regional, will allow us to further that relationship."


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