A prominent leader of the Berber (Amazigh) community in the Rif region of Morocco was arrested today (see: Morocco arrests Rif protest leader Nasser Zefzafi). As the Aljazeera news story states, the people of the Rif region have a long history of resisting the control of their Arab rulers, namely the Alaouite dynasty that has ruled the country since the 17th century. Unlike the people of the Rif, who are descendants of the country's original population, the Alaouites are descendants of foreign Arab conquerors. Hence, the Alaouites are simply another part of the Arab occupation that spans North Africa and the Middle East.
As Aljazeera notes, the people of the Rif region were instrumental in getting the current king, Mohammmed VI, to give up some of his powers, but it's not enough. The Alaouites must be stripped of their power entirely. Only then will Morocco's native Berber inhabitants have any hope of regaining their freedom from Arab tyranny.
Update, May 30, 2017: Scores arrested in connection with Morocco Rif protests
Click here for video about Rif protests.
Morocco: What is fuelling unrest in the Rif?
Update, June 4, 2017: Authorities stifle women's protest in Morocco's Rif
Update, July 19, 2017: Morocco's al-Hoceima gears up for 'million-man march'
Update, July 30, 2017: Moroccan king pardons more than a thousand protestors
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