Expected to take place from November 15 to 17, the fifth edition of the Euro-Mediterranean Young Leaders Forum, co-organized by the French Embassy in Morocco and the French institute, has been slammed by anti-normalization activists in Morocco. The Moroccan Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (MACBI) and Tunisia's TACBI criticized the French Embassy in Rabat for inviting Israeli activists, aged between 18 and 25 years, to the event that is to take place in Essaouira. In a statement sent to Yabiladi, MACBI, which a member of BDS Morocco threatens to boycott the event if the invitations are maintained. The body called for «cancelling the invitations» sent to Israeli activists and urged the Moroccan authorities to intervene and «prevent Israelis from entering the country». MACBI, through BDS Morocco, believes that this announcement «is an attempt to present a state of occupation as a regular partner in Morocco, where the majority of the population clearly rejects normalization».
