Morocco’s Imam Training Institute Leads Fight Against Extremism

Given the radical doctrines to which Morocco has been subjected, and following the attacks in Casablanca in 2003 and Marrakech in 2011, Morocco has decided to put an end to these religious schools from elsewhere. An approach in which Ahmed Toufiq, Minister of Habous and Islamic Affairs, has played an important role by successfully carrying out, under the direction of Mohammed VI, what he calls "the return to tradition", explains the special envoy of Figaro.

This "return to tradition" has involved a "takeover" of mosques and the well-supervised training of imams and the founding of the Mohammed VI Institute, which has been welcoming young Moroccans, French and students from sub-Saharan Africa for five years. Far from the classic Quranic memorization offered by Koranic schools, the Institute has a "vast" library that "bears witness to the diversity and quality of the teachings provided".

"Today, we maintain control to avoid disorder," Ahmed Toufiq stressed. "De facto supervision is imposed on the 52,000 mosques in the country. And each new religious building project is x-rayed by the services of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs." In addition, the Moroccan authorities launched in 2004 the Mohammed VI Radio of the Holy Quran "to counter the Salafist offensive broadcast by satellite television channels".

Even if difficulties are often encountered with regard to the "deradicalization" of imprisoned terrorists, according to a leader of the Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations (BCIJ), good results are being recorded. The special envoy of Figaro was able to meet two "repentant" people, Mohammed Tamir, 48, and Abdellah Jusufi, 21, both of whom had previously belonged to terrorist groups. Today, they claim that their lives have changed, thanks to the "Mosalaha" (reconciliation, in Arabic) program based on three axes: reconciling with oneself, with the religious text and with society.