Death toll in Morocco bombing rises to 16
A victim lies covered after a blast in a cafe popular with foreigners in Marrakech's iconic Djemma El-Fna square. (AP)
Published: Apr 28, 2011 23:38 Updated: Apr 29, 2011 11:34
(Update) MARRAKECH: Morocco’s state news agency on Friday said the death toll in a terrorist attack at a tourist cafe in Marrakech has risen to 16. The MAP agency said 14 of the victims died on the blast site and two died later of injuries. At least 20 were injured. The emergency room chief at Marrakech’s main Tofail Hospital told The Associated Press that one of the injured died at the hospital and another en route in an ambulance.
At least 11 of those killed were foreigners. The Israeli consul in Shanghai said Friday that two were a Jewish couple who lived in Shanghai.
The blast ripped through a cafe overlooking Marrakech's iconic Djemma El-Fna square, a spot that is often packed with foreign tourists. State-run 2M television earlier said the dead included six French nationals, five Moroccans and four foreigners whose nationality it did not give.
"Analysis of the early evidence collected at the site of the blast that occurred on Thursday at a cafe in Marrakech confirms the theory of an attack," the Interior Ministry said in a statement carried by the official MAP news agency.
Two residents in Marrakech who were near the square told Reuters the explosion was carried out by a suicide bomber, but there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
This was the first major attack in Morocco since 2003, when suicide bombings in the commercial capital, Casablanca, killed more than 45 people.
King Mohammed VI ordered a speedy inquiry into the explosion. A statement from the palace said the monarch had instructed the interior and justice ministers to inform the public of the conclusions of the probe "with all the rapidity and and transparency required."
The king has promised to reform the constitution to placate protesters who have been inspired by uprisings in other part of the Arab world. But a fresh round of protests is planned for this Sunday.
"I heard a massive blast. The first and second floors of the building were destroyed," said one local woman, who did not want to be identified. "Some witnesses said they have seen a man carrying a bag entering the cafe before the blast occurred."
The explosion just before noon tore the facade off the two-story terracotta-colored Argana cafe, leaving awnings dangling. Panicked passersby dragged away bodies and tried to put out flames with fire extinguishers, witnesses said.
The square, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is a focal point for the hordes of Western tourists who visit the central city of Marrakech seeking a taste of the exotic in the kingdom on the Atlantic Ocean. The square is known for its snake charmers, fire breathers and old town, or medina.
France condemned the "cruel and cowardly" attack. Nicolas Sarkozy's office said the president learned "with consternation of the terrorist attack."
"He condemns with the greatest firmness this odious, cruel and cowardly act that has caused many casualties, including French citizens," it said.
French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe slammed "this barbaric terrorist attack that nothing can justify," calling in a statement for "all light to be shed on this revolting crime, for those responsible to be found, tried and punished."
Asked whether there was any current threat against French citizens in its former North African protectorate, Sarkozy's adviser Henri Guaino said France "had nothing in particular to fear in Morocco at the moment."
"You can't find a more emblematic target than Djemma El-Fna square," said a Frenchman who owns a restaurant in the city. "With this attack and amid the worrying unrest in the region, tourism will hit the doldrums for some time," said the businessman, who did not want his name published.
Halim Saidi, a doctor at Marrakech's Ibn Tofail Hospital, said one French national died before reaching the hospital and a second foreigner died while undergoing treatment.
He said 18 of the wounded had been brought to his hospital, including eight Moroccans, seven French and two Swiss citizens.
"Five of the wounded foreigners are in serious condition. They have lost limbs because of the explosion, endured serious injuries to the abdomen or suffered major fractures."
The eight Moroccan nationals suffered "relatively minor injuries", he said.
Government spokesman Khalid Naciri said it was too soon to say who was behind what he called a terrorist attack, although, he noted, Morocco regularly dismantles cells linked to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.
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Apr 29, 2011 18:36
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