The authorities of Marrakech area have demolished Monday 26th a newly built construction intended to be the world’s biggest Holocaust Memorial.

The story of a dubious structure that was recently built in the Ait Faska Commune, 27 km south of Marrakech has drawn public attention in Morocco in the past few days. Media, organizations and activists have inquired about the reasons for a holocaust memorial in Morocco.

Today, as the news about the authorities’ intervention to demolish the structure came out, a curious story started to slowly unfold in the midst of confusion and astonishment.

Where there is smoke, there is fire

A revelation by the Marrakech branch of Moroccan Association for Human Rights came out today, reported in the Arabic-language news source Alyaoum24, that a German institution was behind the structure. The institution bought a piece of land in the mentioned area on the basis that it would build on it a recreational park and a tourist resort. However, it used the local labor force to build an odd-looking structure instead, meant to be a holocaust memorial.

The association carried out food aid campaigns and built a small stadium for the benefit of the locals of the commune of Ait Faska, in an attempt to win them over. However, the project rose their eyebrows especially after they saw visitors engaging in “strange rituals” around the structure.

The individual behind the project also offered to buy another piece of land in another area near Marrakech to build a similar structure. However, the locals refused to engage in any sort of transactions with him.

Only after the authorities demolished the structure on Monday that it became clear that the authorities had not authorized this operation.

An Infringement on National Sovereignty

The Marrakech branch of Moroccan Association for Human Rights released a communiqué today strongly condemning the unlawful construction operation, calling it “an infringement on Morocco’s national sovereignty.”

The communiqué stated that the person behind the project exploited the poverty of the locals, calling on the authorities to investigate this incident and reveal its sources of funding. It also demanded to determine the bodies responsible for providing the piece of land for the German association.

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