Former French Diplomat Resigns Amid Marrakech Residence Scandal

The English-language web magazine Politico Europe revealed this information in its May 5 issue, stating that Philippe Casenave was lending his official residence in Marrakech to a "friend" who was using this French state property, a 785 m² riad, as his own home. The diplomat had to give up the prestigious position of Director of State Protocol following the revelations of three of his colleagues, which led to the opening of a "express" internal investigation.

The affair is causing a stir in the world of French diplomacy because the friend in question, a decorator by profession, was receiving friends on weekends in Casenave’s official residence in Marrakech and even had the luxury of using the silverware and dinner service engraved with the insignia of the French Republic. According to the internal investigation, the consul’s "friend" regularly received "young, presumably prostitutes" there in the consul’s absence.