HIBAPRESS – Rabat
The spread of the rumor of the death of a Moroccan security officer, who was said to have been assaulted during the African Cup of Nations final, sparked a wide wave of controversy and anger on social media platforms, amid the absence of any official clarification from the Ministry of Health, which opened the door to the circulation of unconfirmed news and caused widespread public concern.
In this context, a number of activists on social media criticized this silence from the Ministry of Health, considering that what happened reflects a clear defect in crisis communication management, criticizing what they described as the complete silence of the Ministry of Health. Activists pointed out that a simple official statement reassuring citizens about the health condition of the security officer would have been sufficient to cut off the path to the rumor and its psychological repercussions, not only on citizens, but also on the officer's family. They explained that social media sites were flooded with speculation, and that a number of news sites contributed to inflating the news without official support, warning of the danger of publishing outside legal and professional controls, and demanding a firm intervention by the authorities against the pages that promote false news. In a post published on her Facebook page, content creator Adel Ait Bouazza, addressed the party that launched the news of the death, pointing out that the woman who introduced herself as the security officer's doctor, according to his data, has no connection to the medical field, but rather identifies herself in her accounts as a specialist in digital communication, neuro-linguistic programming, and the analysis of international relations, with an interest in media and journalistic companies. He added that browsing the content of her account shows a repeated focus on issues of riots in stadiums since 2024, especially when it comes to certain teams, considering that the news she published is not based on any official confirmation, as no statement has been issued about it by the General Directorate of National Security or the Public Prosecution or the Rabat Security Directorate, nor has it been circulated by official national media or major newspapers. At the end of his post, the content creator confirmed that his private sources categorically denied the validity of the news of the death, stressing that the security officer's injury is not cause for concern, which has revived the discussion about the responsibility of institutional communication and the role of the media in verifying news before publishing it, especially in sensitive issues that affect the feelings of citizens and their psychological security.
