The judicial police services in Khouribga confirmed on Thursday that reports regarding the kidnapping of five female students since Monday are "completely unfounded".

According to the same source, these are "teenagers who ran away of their own free will, either because they felt upset with their parents or due to poor academic results during the first semester of the school year".

Two girls were recovered on Wednesday evening by their relatives in the city of Marrakech and are in good health after having spent two nights there at the Jemâa El Fna square, the source specified.

Following the disappearance of these girls, several media outlets mentioned cases of kidnapping, which they attributed to criminal gangs.