HIBAPRESS – Mohammed Zerouih
A visit by a number of Spanish citizens on Friday, October 9, 2026, to a historic military barracks located in the old center of the Hassi Berkane commune in the Nador province, has shed light on one of the landmarks that hold within its walls chapters of the region's history during the Spanish colonial period. This visit brings to the forefront the importance of historical sites that have witnessed profound transformations in the region, the traces of which are still present in the collective memory of its inhabitants.
The aforementioned military barracks is among the buildings associated with the Spanish colonial era, a period that marked the history of vast areas in northern and eastern Morocco and left behind a number of military and administrative facilities, some of which still stand today. This building forms part of the historical landscape of Hassi Berkane, with its historical and architectural symbolism, and the questions it raises about the nature of the period during which it was built and the roles it played in the context of that era.
The visit by Spanish citizens holds particular significance from the perspective of renewed interest in landmarks associated with the shared history between Morocco and Spain, with its complex stages and diverse events that call for documentation, research, and objective handling. The visit also highlights the potential of these sites to attract those interested in history and researchers of colonial memory, provided that accurate historical data is available to help understand their true context, far from reductionism or oblivion.
On the other hand, the condition of the historic barracks in Hassi Berkane highlights the importance of preserving the architectural heritage that the commune abounds with, especially since many landmarks related to previous historical periods require documentation, maintenance, and recognition of their value. Preserving these buildings remains a responsibility that requires the concerted efforts of concerned authorities, local stakeholders, and researchers, in order to collect historical narratives and testimonies, verify data related to the site's history, and determine appropriate ways to protect it from neglect and deterioration.
This visit opens the door to considering the valorization of the military barracks as part of the historical memory of Hassi Berkane and the Nador province, by preparing a documentary study on its history and promoting it within local cultural and heritage routes, whenever the necessary conditions are met. Historical landmarks are not merely silent buildings, but rather testaments to the transformations of the past and an invitation to read and understand it, ensuring the preservation of local memory and its transmission to future generations, while highlighting the region's richness and its historical and cultural assets.
