His Majesty King Mohammed VI, accompanied by the Servant of the Holy Places of Islam, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, H.R.H. Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan, H.R.H. Prince Moulay Rachid, and H.H. Prince Moulay Ismaïl, presided over a reception on Friday at the Marshan Palace in Tangier on the occasion of the Sovereign's 52nd birthday. Also present at this reception were several Royal Highnesses and Princes of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Highnesses Sheikhs of the United Arab Emirates.
On this occasion, H.M. the King decorated several national and foreign personalities with Royal Wissams. Thus, the Sovereign decorated with the Wissam Al Moukafaa Al Watania of the second class (Commander): Mr Hamadi Ammor, actor, who could not attend for health reasons (the decoration was presented to his son Mohamed Ammor); Salaheddine Benmoussa, actor; Rachid El Ouali, actor and director; Aziz El Fadili, actor and director; Miloud El Habachi, actor; Moulay Tahar El Asbahani, founding member of the Jil Jilala group; and Ahmed El Alaoui, artist-composer. H.M. the King also decorated with the Wissam Alaoui of the second class (Commander): Mr Hani Chakir, artist-singer from the Arab Republic of Egypt; Hossein El Jasmi, artist-singer from the United Arab Emirates; and Mosaab El Anzi, poet and artistic producer from the State of Kuwait.
The Sovereign also decorated with the Wissam Al Moukafaa Al Wataniya of the third class (Officer): Nouamane Lahlou, artist-singer and composer; Saïd Chraïbi, talented artist-musician who plays the lute; Bachir Lamjared, known as Bachir Abdou, artist-singer; Mustapha Bourgone, artist and composer of popular songs; Aïcha Mah Mah, actress; Hanane El Fadili, actress; Yassine Rahmouni, equestrian, specialist in horse breeding; and Noufel Hassani, equestrian, specialist in horse breeding.
Also decorated with the same Wissam were: Bouchra Bibanou, mountaineer who reached the summit of the highest mountain in North America; Meriem Baraja, Moroccan mountaineer who climbed the highest mountains in Europe and Australia; Nadia Benbahtane, swimmer who crossed the Strait of Gibraltar in 2015 without any assistance; Hassan Baraka, swimmer who completed the crossing between several continents by free swimming; and Lina Benkhraba, equestrian, champion of equestrian games.
H.M. the King also decorated with the Wissam Al Moukafaa Al Wataniya of the fourth class (Knight): Saïd Mouskir, artist-singer; Saad Lamjered, artist-singer; Oum El Ghit Ben Sahraoui, known as Oum, artist-singer; Mohamed Jbara, composer and producer; Mohamed Mezouri, known as Mouslim, RAP artist-singer; Saïd Achibane, known as HNaime, RAP artist-singer; Nabila Maâane, artist-singer; Ahmed Soltane, artist-singer; and Amine Tamiri, known as Aminux, RAP artist-singer.
The Sovereign was subsequently greeted by several personalities from the world of science and culture, who presented the Sovereign with some of their works. These include Mr Mohamed Amine Sbihi, Minister of Culture, and Abdelhak Lamrini, Historiographer of the Kingdom, Spokesperson of the Royal Palace, and President of the Scientific Committee of the Moulay Ali Cherif University, who presented His Majesty the King with a work in Arabic entitled "Sidi Mohamed Ben Youssef from allegiance to the Sultan's call of 1939".
Also present were Mr Mohamed El Kettani, Chargé de Mission at the Royal Cabinet, who presented the Sovereign with a work in Arabic entitled "Terminology of religious and scientific Arab heritage", and Mostapha El Ktiri, High Commissioner for Former Resistance Fighters and Former Members of the Liberation Army, who presented H.M. the King with works published by the High Commission concerning the "Assessment of the action of this institution during the period 2008-2014 (2 volumes)" and "The relationship between authority and the tribes of the Rif mountains".
Also present were Mr Ahmed Chaouki Binbine, Director of the Hassania Library, who presented H.M. the King with works revised and edited by this Library; Ms Bahija Simou, Director of the Royal Archives, who presented the Sovereign with a work entitled "Moroccan-French relations, a multi-centennial history"; and Hassan El Figuigui, university professor, former professor at the Royal College, historian, and researcher at the Directorate of the Royal Archives, who presented the Sovereign with a book entitled "Atlas of the Eastern Rif: research in geographical history". The Sovereign was also greeted by Mohamed Zinedine, professor of constitutional law and political science at Hassan II University in Casablanca, who presented the Sovereign with a work in Arabic entitled "The Constitution and the governance regime in Morocco".
On the same occasion, Ms Karima Yathribi, professor of French literature at Mohammed V University in Rabat, presented the Sovereign with two works entitled "The rustling of memories" (Edmond Amrane El Maleh) and "Ahmed Sefrioui between oblivion and rehabilitation". Mr Hamid El Hasnaoui, equestrian, also presented H.M. the King with a work dealing with the history of cavalry in Morocco entitled "By duty of memory".
The Sovereign was then greeted by Ibrahim Lahnit, professor-researcher in contemporary history at Charles de Gaulle University in Lille (France), who presented H.M. the King with three works entitled "The conditions for the establishment of the Treaty of Fez, the Souss geographical, historical and human, and the application of the Treaty of Fez in the Souss region 1912-1956". Mr Abdelaziz Laaroussi, executive at the Royal Cabinet, subsequently presented the Sovereign with a work in Arabic entitled "Moroccan legislation and international human rights conventions". Tariq El Maliki, professor at ISCAE, also presented H.M. the King with two works entitled "Corporate Social Responsibility" and "Investment climate: company performance".
The Sovereign was also greeted by Zineb El Adaoui, Wali of the Gharb Chrarda Bni Hssen region, who presented the Sovereign with a collection of poems and a work written by her late father, Sheikh Ahmed El Adaoui. Mr Ibrahim El Fassi El Fihri, President of the Amadeus Institute, and Khalid Ouiya, Director General of the Urban Agency of Rabat-Salé, respectively presented the Sovereign with works entitled "Morocco in Africa, the Royal path" and "Greater Rabat, a capital in motion".
H.M. the King was also greeted by Ms Lamia Belachhab, researcher in history and civilisation, who presented the Sovereign with a work on the monuments of Rabat, as well as by Father Simeon Czeslaw Michal Stachera, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Tangier, who presented the Sovereign with a book in Spanish entitled "Franciscanos y Sultanes en Marruecos". Ezzedine Benseti, professor of legal sciences at Hassan II University in Casablanca, for his part, presented the Sovereign with a work on companies in Moroccan law and another on Moroccan commercial law (2 volumes).
Subsequently, Mohamed Aterkin, member of the Constitutional Council, presented the Sovereign with a book on parliamentary opposition, before Mr Ahmed Birou, artist-singer of Gharnati music, presented H.M. the King with one of his works. Mr Hiba Ouayssi, lawyer in Paris, lecturer at French law faculties, and Ahmed Ghayat, President of the Marocains Pluriels association, respectively presented the Sovereign with works entitled "Tomorrow's work: renovation or revolution" and "The other side of the sun".
Taking part in this reception were the Head of Government, the Presidents of the two Houses of Parliament, the Advisors to H.M. the King, members of the government, high commissioners, presidents of constitutional institutions, directors of Royal Cabinets, senior officers of the General Staff of the Royal Armed Forces, members of the diplomatic corps accredited to Morocco, as well as several civilian and military personalities.
