Morocco set for fresh protests after demonstrators killed

Security forces advance with a water-cannon vehicle to disperse protesters during a youth-led demonstration demanding reforms in the healthcare and education sectors in Sale on October 1, 2025. [AFP

Protests in Morocco calling for reforms to public services and an end to corruption were set to take place for a sixth day on Thursday, after two demonstrators were killed the night before.

The protests, which have convulsed several cities in the North African country, were called by the group GenZ 212, a recently formed collective based on the Discord web platform whose organisers remain unknown.

GenZ 212 has repeatedly urged demonstrators to remain peaceful, and announced Thursday on Discord that further "peaceful protests will be organised today, as part of a civilised and responsible expression of our demands".

The protests were set to begin in the afternoon (1600 GMT), the group said, adding that gathering points would be announced later in the day.

Since the demonstrations started, hundreds of mostly young people have been arrested, and two were killed on Wednesday night when officers opened fire on a group of demonstrators they said were attempting to "storm" a police station near Agadir.

Local authorities said demonstrators wielding "bladed weapons" had attempted to "seize ammunition, equipment and service weapons" from the police station.

Morocco's interior ministry said on Wednesday that more than 400 people had been arrested during the rallies, with nearly 300 people -- mainly from security forces -- injured.

Many, but not all, of the protests have been peaceful.

Violent clashes and acts of vandalism erupted in some cities, including in Sidi Bibi, also near Agadir, where demonstrators set offices of the local commune headquarters on fire, according to media reports and videos on social media.

"We assure the public and the authorities that our demonstrations will be entirely peaceful," GenZ 212 insisted, saying it "rejects all forms of violence, vandalism or rioting".

It reminded protesters "to respect the peaceful nature" of the movement.

On Wednesday, rallies in cities including Casablanca, Tangier and Tetouan were taking place with official authorisation for the first time since the gatherings began on Saturday.

Demonstrators called for "the fall of corruption" as well as "freedom, dignity and social justice", while some urged Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch to step down.

The protests have also demanded reforms to the education and public health sectors, and come at a time of popular discontent over Morocco's social inequalities, which have disproportionately affected young people and women.

Recent reports of the deaths of eight pregnant women at a public hospital in Agadir have been a particular source of public outrage.