The Ministry of Interior explained that sand extraction in the Arja area "and at zero distance from the border in the past, began to result in changing the natural border landmarks, according to the opinion expressed more than once by the representative of the military garrison in the meetings of the Regional Security Committee."
This came in a response to a written question by the Member of Parliament for the Socialist Group - Ittihadi Opposition, Omar Aanan, regarding "the deterioration of the economic and social situation and development mobility in the city of Figuig due to depriving sand trucks from using the Arja quarries."
The Ministry of Interior said in the same response, which Hespress reviewed, that the owners of these trucks "insist as a condition for returning to their activity on extracting building materials from places located in the border strip in the Arja area, without adhering to the legal requirements related to obtaining the necessary licenses to practice this activity."
It added that those concerned went on strike during two separate periods; the first extended from February 4, 2024, until June 4 of the same year, and the second from July 5, 2024, until now, "where the owners of nine trucks did so in solidarity with a colleague after he was stopped by the police services for not having a technical inspection document, as well as with the organizers of the protests rejecting the accession of the Figuig commune to the Eastern Territorial Collectivities Group for Distribution."
The Ministry of Interior indicated, in the same context, that a legally established company had submitted a request to exploit the sand quarry in the "Dafilia" area belonging to the territorial commune of Abbou Lakhal near the city of Figuig, and it was licensed as an alternative according to the procedures in force.
Regarding building permits, the response signed by Abdelouafi Laftit highlighted that "this problem has already been settled definitively during a meeting held by the provincial authority in the presence of all components of the urban planning system (the prefecture, the commune, and the urban agency), so it was decided to adopt the development plan for the city of Figuig as a reference for studying building permit applications instead of adopting the 2008 territorial zoning. This was documented in an official report, and therefore the problem was overcome and all building permit applications are being studied normally."
MP Omar Aanan had mentioned in his question that "despite the mediations and promises made to resolve the situation, the decision to prevent trucks from accessing the Arja quarries, which are located on Moroccan territory and which have been used habitually for long decades, has made the situation more complicated," noting that the meetings that included representatives of the local authorities and the Royal Armed Forces "did not yield practical solutions, but rather all proposals were rejected, including opening new entrances to the quarries."
Aanan warned that "the crisis has worsened due to the prevention of trucks intended for vital purposes, such as repairing the city's water supply channels, as it hinders the completion of their tasks."
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