About twenty military observers from partner countries attended, on Tuesday in Cap Draâ (north of Tan-Tan), operational training carried out as part of the combined Moroccan-American exercise “African Lion 2022”.
These maneuvers were followed in particular by Lieutenant General Belkhir El Farouk, Inspector General of the Royal Armed Forces (FAR) and Commander of the South Zone.
Organized by the FAR and the American Armed Forces, in accordance with the High Instructions of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, Supreme Chief and Chief of the General Staff of the FAR, the “African Lion” exercise, which continues until 30 June, aims to perfect the intervention capacities of the participating units and to strengthen their combined action capacities in terms of the planning and implementation of military operations within the framework of a coalition.
In a statement to MAP, Colonel Nabil Taoussi, director of the tactical exercise at Cap Draâ, noted that in accordance with the High Instructions of HM the King, Supreme Leader and Chief of General Staff of the FAR, the Armed Forces Royales are organizing this 18th edition of the “African Lion”, stressing that it is the largest military exercise in Africa.
The tactical exercise organized in Cap Draâ with the participation of more than 2,500 soldiers, aims to strengthen the maneuvering capacities of the participating units and to consolidate interoperability on the tactical and technical levels, he indicated.
These military maneuvers include shooting sessions using different weapons (individual, Abrams tanks, heavy artillery, anti-tank missile launchers, etc.), he noted, stressing that these training sessions will be sanctioned by a joint maneuver, with the key to operations of aerial bombardment and destruction of the enemy by the alternate and coordinated use of all weapons, as well as a combination of fire and movement.
During the military exercise, held Tuesday at Cap Draâ, which is a preparatory exercise for the final maneuvers, which will take place Thursday at Cap Draâ in Tan-Tan, air and land maneuvers were carried out with the participation of units from the FAR and US forces.
The aerial maneuvers included the execution of several missions by means of the FRA and the US Air Force, among others, Moroccan “F16” planes, American “B1” bombers and American “AH 64” Apache helicopters.
As for land maneuvers, they focused on firing heavy artillery shells, launching long-range surface-to-surface missiles and launching missiles from Moroccan-American “Abrams” armored vehicles, as well as maneuvers infantry using heavy armored vehicles carrying soldiers.
On the other hand, and as part of the parallel humanitarian activities of the “African Lion 2022” exercise, a medical-surgical field hospital was deployed in the municipality of Taliouine (province of Taroudant).
Mobilizing medical teams made up of doctors and nurses from the FAR and the American Army, this hospital, which has been operational since June 13, provides medical and surgical services for the benefit of the local populations of the region.
This year’s edition, launched on June 20 at the level of the southern zone command, has the participation of 10 African and international countries, including Morocco and the United States, as well as about twenty military observers from partner countries in the regions of Agadir, Benguerir, Kénitra, Mahbès, Taroudant and Tantan.
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