French Woman Pleads for Help to Repatriate Mother’s Body from Lockdown-Stricken Morocco

Catherine chose RTL to testify and at the same time launch an urgent appeal to the authorities. Blocked in Tangier since January, her parents failed to board a ferry to return to the country. The reason? The closure of Morocco’s borders to curb the spread of the coronavirus in the kingdom. At the end of June, they had a glimmer of hope. Unexpectedly, things are getting complicated for Catherine’s parents. Her mother’s health is deteriorating, then she dies.

"Deconfinement took place in early July. They couldn’t come back, no boat. We were told: ’It’s coming.’ But there still aren’t any. That’s when mom got sick. She died on Saturday, July 11 at the hospital in Tangier," Catherine recounts.

Her father, still stuck in Tangier, is facing the impossibility of organizing the repatriation of his wife’s body. No available flights. "Dad is disgusted, he’s 73 years old. He just wants to come back. We’re not asking for the moon [...] Everyone doesn’t give a damn," she fumes with anger.