Morocco steps up border controls
2003-05-17 16:37
Madrid - Morocco on Saturday partially closed its border with the Spanish enclave of Melilla on the north African coast and stepped up border controls after a series of bomb attacks killed 39 people and injured dozens more in the country's biggest city Casablanca.
"An investigation is under way, and controls have been put in place by Moroccan authorities" to step up checks on people leaving Morocco, said a local government spokesperson.
The border was partially closed at midnight on Friday, about two hours after the first bombs went off.
A Spanish diplomatic source said one Spanish man was among the dead in the Casablanca attacks, according to information passed on by the Moroccan authorities, while two more Spanish men and one Spanish woman were among the injured.
Around 20 people are believed to have died at the Casa Espana cultural centre and restaurant, the scene of at least one of the blasts.
Spaniards as well as Moroccan residents or workers may leave Morocco for the enclave. On Saturday about 50 Spanish nationals were waiting to cross the border to enter the enclave.