Gibraltar Seeks to Reopen Travel Routes with Morocco Amid Pandemic Restrictions

The exclusion of Spain from the Marhaba 2021 operation has put Gibraltar and Moroccan citizens residing there in difficulty. The latter cannot go to Morocco from the Rock due to the Covid-19 pandemic. To solve this problem, a meeting was held between Vijay Daryanani, Minister of Business, Tourism, Transport and Port of Gibraltar and Ali Doussi, representative of the Moroccan Community Association, reports the Spanish media Vozpopuli. The minister outlined the steps taken by the Gibraltar government. He is negotiating with the national airline Royal Air Maroc (RAM) and other companies to "restore transport links".

According to the minister, his government is continuing its efforts to restore maritime and air routes with Morocco. "The Moroccan community is an integral part of the Gibraltar family," he said.

This year, Morocco excluded the Spanish ports from the Marhaba operation, an annual operation that marks the return of nearly 3 million Moroccans residing abroad (MREs) to Morocco to spend the summer vacation. An exclusion that affects the ports of Algeciras, Tarifa, Malaga, Motril, Almeria, Alicante, Ceuta and Melilla.