Morocco’s Espionage Empire: From Dutch Scandal to European Complicity
✍️ BY: Dr. Hana Saada
Algiers – September 2025 – A new scandal has erupted in the Netherlands, exposing once again the clandestine reach and brazen operations of Morocco’s espionage machine in Europe. The infiltration of the Dutch national anti-terrorist agency by Abderrahim El M.—an agent linked directly to Rabat’s intelligence network—illustrates the magnitude of the Makhzen’s shadow statecraft. What is being revealed today is not an isolated aberration; it is the latest chapter in a long and sordid history of infiltration, cyber-espionage, corruption, and coercion, orchestrated under the supervision of Yassine Mansouri, confidant of King Mohammed VI and head of Morocco’s foreign intelligence service, the DGED.
The Dutch case lays bare the same pattern already documented in the Pegasus spyware scandal and the corruption storm that came to be known as Moroccogate. Each revelation deepens the portrait of a regime that has made espionage and political manipulation its default mode of engagement with Europe. Judges in The Hague suspect that Mansouri himself met repeatedly with the infiltrated agent—evidence that the chain of command extends to the highest echelons of the Moroccan state.
The Pegasus affair, exposed in 2021, demonstrated beyond doubt that Rabat weaponized Zionist spyware to monitor not just dissidents and journalists, but also European heads of state, diplomats, and security officials. Emmanuel Macron’s own phone number was among the potential targets. Hundreds of European numbers were infected, yet Paris and Madrid, rather than confronting Rabat, chose silence and appeasement. Their complicity is rooted in transactional politics: fears over migration flows, dependence on Moroccan cooperation in counter-terrorism, and above all, bargaining over Western Sahara.
The political front is equally damning. The Qatargate corruption scandal swiftly revealed Moroccan fingerprints, morphing into “Moroccogate.” Belgian judges confirmed that cash payments emanated directly from Moroccan intelligence, funneled to Members of the European Parliament, their aides, and former officials. The objective was clear: launder the illegal occupation of Western Sahara and secure preferential trade agreements. Once again, the name of Yassine Mansouri surfaces—proof of continuity in method and command.
Even earlier, in 2014, the whistleblower known as Chris Coleman had already published troves of internal documents from Morocco’s foreign ministry and intelligence services. These files exposed Rabat’s grand strategy: to buy influence in European media, bribe political actors, manipulate NGOs, and infiltrate diasporas. At the time, Moroccan authorities dismissed the revelations as “fake news,” while European chancelleries reacted with embarrassment and denial. Pegasus and Moroccogate have since vindicated Coleman’s disclosures.
The Dutch scandal confirms what has long been evident: Morocco treats Europe as a theatre of operations, surveilling Rifian diaspora communities, subverting institutions, and corrupting officials. The impunity with which these practices have unfolded is sustained not by Rabat’s cunning alone, but by the willful blindness of European capitals. From Paris to Brussels, the equation remains unchanged—energy security, migration management, and Western Sahara trump rule of law and democratic integrity.
Yet a symbolic crack has now appeared. The Dutch judiciary’s request to summon Yassine Mansouri—even if it ultimately stalls—signals the first public attempt in Europe to pierce Morocco’s wall of impunity. It places the chief of Moroccan intelligence in the crosshairs of accountability, aligning him with a growing body of evidence: Pegasus, Moroccogate, Coleman’s leaks, and now the Netherlands.
Europe must confront an unavoidable truth: continued indulgence of the Makhzen corrodes its institutions from within. By tolerating espionage, corruption, and subversion, Europe not only betrays the values it claims to defend, but also emboldens a regime that has weaponized its alliances for illicit ends. The question is no longer whether Morocco has crossed red lines—it has—but whether Europe will finally cease its complicity.
Translated from:
https://lapatrienews.dz/espionnage-marocain-du-scandale-neerlandais-aux-complicites-europeennes/
📡🌍 | About Dzair Tube Media Group | 🌍📡
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📰 Dzair Tube is a trailblazer in Algerian digital journalism, delivering high-quality content in Arabic, French, and English. With more than 📈 500,000 daily clicks, it ranks among the most influential media platforms in the country.
🏆 Awarded the President of the Republic’s Prize for Professional Journalist in the Electronic Press category (🗓 October 22, 2022), Dzair Tube is widely recognized for its editorial excellence and integrity.
📱 Massive Digital Reach:
🔴 350,000+ YouTube subscribers
🔵 6 million+ followers across Facebook pages
📸 70,000+ Instagram followers
🎥 Operating from state-of-the-art studios, Dzair Tube broadcasts rich and diverse programming, including:
🗞 News | ⚽ Sports | 🎭 Entertainment | 🕌 Religion | 🎨 Culture
🗣️ Featuring interactive talk shows and exclusive interviews with prominent figures from politics, business, arts, and more, Dzair Tube serves as a key platform for public discourse and civic engagement.
📰 Its print sports daily, “Dzair Sport,” enjoys over 50,000 daily downloads via the official website—further cementing the platform’s multimedia leadership.
🎖️ Honored with the Media Leadership Award by the former Minister of Communication, Mohamed Laâgab, and celebrated at the Hilals of the Television awards, Dzair Tube continues to lead with innovation, influence, and impact.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
🌐 Stay Connected:
🔗 Website: www.dzair-tube.dz
🔗 English: www.dzair-tube.dz/en
📲 Follow us on Facebook | Instagram | YouTube
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
