HM King Mohammed VI, accompanied by Prince Moulay Rachid and Prince Moulay Ismail, chaired, on Monday in Agadir, an award ceremony of small-scale fishing boats to fishermen victims of bad weather that occurred last February.
The sovereign was given details on this operation which provides for replacing 197 disaster-hit boats, benefiting 800 fishermen and their families, for an amount of 12 million dirhams (over $1.3mln).
The boats are equipped with motors, fishing devices, insulated chambers for fish preservation, safety equipment and communications kits.
Bad weather, which has affected the region of Agadir on February 18, caused the drift of 11 trawlers and the destruction of many small-scale fishing boats.
This operation will enable modernizing 10% of the small-scale fishing fleet in Agadir and purchasing boats that meet safety and quality standards.
HM the King presides over new Ramadan religious lecture
HM King Mohammed VI, Commander of the Faithful, accompanied by Prince Moulay Rachid and Prince Moulay Ismail, presided, on Monday at the Mohammed V mosque in Agadir, over a new Ramadan religious lecture.
The lecture was delivered by Professor Ahmed Ramzi, member of the Higher Council of Ulema (Muslim scholars).
The Professor addressed the theme of "medicine and its current issues in light of ethics and the Islamic Sharia", drawing on the Koranic verse: "We have honoured the sons of Adam; provided them with transport on land and sea; given them for sustenance things good and pure; and conferred on them special favours, above a great part of our creation."
Prof. Ramzi Ahmed said that the honour given to humans is manifested through the pre-eminence they have on other creatures, namely the cognitive and morphological properties that God has endowed them.
It is therefore imperative for humans, according to the divine commandments, to preserve their physical and mental health, while giving special attention to prevention and medication, as recommended in many Hadiths (Prophet Mohammed’s sayings).
The lecturer also gave an overview of the tremendous advances in medicine during the golden age of the Islamic civilization, adding that this science was based on well-developed rules and ethical standards.
There followed a period of decline of the Islamic world, due to multiple endogenous and exogenous factors, he said, recalling the Western outstanding medicine booming, which benefited from the rich Muslim scientific heritage.
Prof. Ramzi addressed four major issues in relation to medical ethics, namely, organ transplantation, genetic engineering, euthanasia and abortion, noting that life is a God’s gift which human beings can hold in the limit of compliance with certain ethical standards.
The lecturer also highlighted Morocco’s relevant approach, under the wise leadership of HM the King, Commander of the Faithful, who has been committed to initiate an approach involving experts and the Ulema with a multidisciplinary education, notably during the drafting of the Moudawana (Family Law).
This approach promotes harmony between the Shariah (Islamic law) and development requirements, including medicine, he said.
HM the King chairs religious evening to commemorate Laylat Al-Qadr
HM King Mohammed VI, Commander of the Faithful, accompanied by Prince Moulay Rachid and Prince Moulay Ismail, presided, on Monday in the Mohammed V mosque in Agadir, over a religious evening in commemoration of Laylat Al-Qadr (26th day of Ramadan).
Following Al Icha and Taraouih prayers, the child Hamza Sahili, recipient of the Mohammed VI national prize for Koran’s memorizing and psalmody, recited verses of the Holy Koran before receiving an award handed by His Majesty.
On this occasion, Egyptian Professor Hassan Al Chafiî, an Al Azhar scholar and former president of the Islamic University of Islamabad, gave an address on behalf of the Ulema (Muslim scholars) who took part in the Ramadan religious lectures.
In the address, he expressed the Ulema’s heartfelt thankfulness to the sovereign, adding that these lectures, which brought together foreign and Moroccan scholars, were an opportunity to recite the Koran, contemplate its meanings and deepen knowledge during this sacred month.
He underscored the moderate and middle way choice of the Kingdom, adding these lectures, held under the chairmanship of HM the King, coincided this year with the celebration of the Sovereign’s 47th birthday.
The Al Azhar scholar expressed the Ulema’s admiration for the attachment of the Moroccan people to the Commander of the Faithful and for the Kingdom’s achievements in all fields, highlighting the special attention given to the religious field, as evidenced by the setting up of the Mohammed VI Foundation for the publication of the Holy Quran according the state-of-the-art technologies.
He also commended the efforts, spearheaded by HM the King, benefiting Imams and the members of Ulema councils, who endeavour to spread the precepts of religion, shield it from deviant interpretations and defend the Moroccan constants of Unity, the Achaarite doctrine, the Malikite rite, the Sufi method and the Commandership of the Faithful.
Then, the Monarch awarded the National Award Wissam with the rank of Commander to Mohamed Chiadmi for his translation of the Holy Koran into French, while Mohamed Lamaalmine was decorated with the National Award wissam with the rank of Officer, for his transcription of the Moshaf Mohammadi.
On the same occasion, Lamaalmine presented to HM the King a painting depicting the Qubbat as-Sakhra mosque in Al-Quds using the Moroccan Kufi calligraphy.
The religious evening was marked by "Khatm Sahih Al-Boukhari", delivered by Mohamed Jamil Moubarak, President of the local Ulema council of Agadir.
The event was notably attended by Prime Minister, the Sovereign’s Advisors, the cabinet members, representatives of diplomatic corps of Islamic countries in Morocco, senior military officials in addition to several eminent Moroccan and foreign Muslim scholars.