Tangier Residents Struggle as COVID-19 Surge Prompts Strict Lockdown Measures

Beaches, gardens, gyms and hammams closed, playgrounds covered... The people of Tangier, who have been in lockdown since the state of health emergency came into effect last March, are at the end of their rope. Faced with the impossibility of enjoying the beaches during this summer season, some express their dismay.

"Not being able to enjoy the beaches is a torment. Especially when we see that in other cities like Casablanca, people are swimming in crowded beaches... We are experiencing real injustice," fumes Abderrahmane, a 10-year-old schoolboy. He and his brothers came to the beach but a policeman prohibited them from accessing it, reports AFP.

"In Tangier, a summer without beaches is not a summer! Why this ban? Here, the beaches are so vast that social distancing would be easily applied," criticizes Ahmed Touil, a 22-year-old young man. "Where else to go? The hotel pools? It’s out of our price range: 200 to 300 dirhams! (20 to 30 €)". "We can’t take it anymore. No sports, no beaches, no green spaces... It’s affecting our morale," complains Hikmat Amri.

The closure of beaches, sports and other facilities is explained by the unflattering epidemiological situation in Morocco. The official Covid-19 report (as of Friday, August 14) shows 39,241 cases of contamination and 611 deaths. In addition, Tangier is one of the cities that has seen an increase in contamination in recent days. Several clusters have been discovered in factories. The non-observance of barrier gestures by a section of the population has worsened the epidemiological situation since the end of July.