Moroccan military stands up Eastern Zone

M1A1SA MBTs from the 2nd Royal Tank Brigade, which is based in Errachidia, the headquarters of the new Zone East. (Forces Armées Royales Marocaines)

Morocco's Royal Armed Forces (FAR) has created a third military zone in the east of the country, according to the latest issue of its Revue magazine.

Major General Mohammed Miqdad formally became the first commander of the new Zone East during a ceremony held in Errachidia on 5 January that was overseen by Lieutenant General Belkhir el-Farouk, who serves as both the commander of Zone South and inspector general of the FAR.

“The creation of this entity aims to ensure the consistency of the command, control, and support of the land, air, and maritime components of the FAR in a combined arms and joint framework in order to have more flexibility and freedom of action necessary for the accomplishment of the various missions,” the magazine reported.

It provided no further details of the new military zone such as its geographical extent or the forces assigned to it.

The FAR was previously divided into North and South Zones, the later being based in Agadir and responsible for the disputed Western Sahara to the south, where the Algerian-backed Polisario Front rebels relaunched their insurgency in November 2020.