Deep-Rooted Morocco-Senegal Ties Resist AFCON Tensions, Algerian Machinations

On May 27, 2026

Rabat – The striking coincidence between President Diomaye Faye’s dismissal of former Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko and King Mohammed VI’s royal pardon for Senegalese fans detained in Rabat over the AFCON final unrest has fueled speculation over whether tensions with Rabat contributed to the final denouement of the leadership and personality rift between Sonko and Faye.

According to converging reports and experts who have spoken to Morocco World News (MWN) on this curious timing of Sonko’s dismissal and the royal pardon, what is undeniably clear is that Sonko’s undiplomatic attitude and feisty comments during the post-AFCON crisis threatened to considerably set back the deep, centuries-long Dakar-Rabat ties.

In this sense, experts have told MWN, the timing of the royal pardons and the tenor of the royal communique that followed came as a message of de-escalation and potential return to normality in Senegal-Morocco ties in the coming weeks and months. Indeed, the sacking of Sonko came against the backdrop of recent strains in Morocco-Senegal relations. Some observers pointed to how such political tensions were exploited by external actors seeking to leverage regional developments for their own strategic or political gain.

Last week, Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye sacked his close political ally and longtime friend, dissolving the country’s government after months of tensions between the two leaders.

Sonko’s dismissal came on the heels of economic pressure, as the IMF estimates the country’s debt at 132% of GDP at the end of 2024.

Many political analysts have also drawn a line between the dismissal and recent developments in Morocco-Senegal relations, especially after what happened during the Africa Cup of Nations.

Sonko’s government sparked uproar and frustration in Morocco following the chaotic AFCON, after Senegal’s team walked off the pitch following a controversial penalty awarded by the referee to the Atlas Lions during the tournament’s final on January 18.

Senegal’s walk-off changed the course of the match by causing a more than 15-minute stoppage. The referee’s decision was also marked by violent reactions from some Senegalese fans, who resorted to vandalism and hooliganism, causing the intervention of security officers. In March, a Rabat court handed prison terms ranging from a few months to one year to 18 Senegalese fans it found guilty of hooliganism and property damage during the final.

Sonko strongly criticized Morocco’s judiciary for the court’s decision, claiming that the case had “gone beyond the realm of sport.”

Despite the serious and disturbing acts of violence, Sonko alleged that the handling of the case did not honor the ties between Dakar and Rabat.

Algeria sought to exploit friction

Algerian political analyst and journalist Oualid Kebir told MWN that Sonko’s dismissal was not only due to this incident.

“This internal political crisis cannot be separated from a significant development: the Moroccan royal pardon granted to 18 Senegalese supporters, only hours after Sonko’s dismissal,” Kebir told MWN.

On Saturday, King Mohammed VI’s royal statement announcing the pardon sparked celebrations not only in Senegal but also among Moroccans, who highlighted the importance of such humanitarian acts reflecting Morocco’s diplomatic approach in handling a sensitive situation.

“This gesture, in my view, reflects Morocco’s choice of de-escalation and its preference for maintaining and strengthening deep historical relations with Senegal rather than allowing tensions to escalate,” the analyst said.

Indeed, observers did not expect such tension following AFCON, considering how relations between the two countries have long deepened and prospered at all levels.

Senegal has been the African country most visited by King Mohammed VI, with the monarch having made a total of nine official visits to the West African country. It is also the only country where King Mohammed VI addressed his people from abroad in a speech on an occasion of strategic national significance, reflecting the importance and strategic depth of bilateral ties.

Senegal is also one of the key players in the ongoing, Morocco-spearheaded mega project, the African Atlantic Gas Pipeline, both as a gas-producing country and as a central link along the route.

Against the backdrop of recent AFCON developments, Kebir emphasized how such moments also create space for competing geopolitical narratives, including attempts from external actors to influence or instrumentalize perceptions surrounding developments in West Africa.

For Kebir, the royal pardon is a blow to Algeria’s regime and its attempts to deepen friction between Dakar and Rabat, particularly given Senegal’s strategic importance in Morocco’s outreach to West Africa and its traditional position in support of Morocco’s stance on the Western Sahara dispute.

Senegal has long backed Morocco’s territorial integrity and sovereignty over its southern provinces, embracing and describing the Moroccan Autonomy Plan as the only viable route to a lasting and politically feasible settlement of the Western Sahara dispute.

However, Kebir acknowledged that the internal crisis was also a key factor behind Sonko’s dismissal.

For him, the dissolution of the Senegalese government constituted a political “earthquake.”

History protects Senegalese-Moroccan ties

“Sonko was not an ordinary prime minister. He embodied popular legitimacy within the political project, while President Faye holds constitutional legitimacy as head of state,” the analyst explained. “This duality of power was not sustainable given their diverging visions on governance, which eventually turned into a form of power-sharing conflict at the highest level of the state.” Hassan Belouan, professor and researcher in history and international relations, joined Kebir in examining the dynamics between Sonko and Senegal’s President Faye.

He said the current developments are not an isolated case in Senegal’s political history, recalling tensions and dismissals at the highest levels of executive power in the country’s modern trajectory.

“It is necessary to return to modern Senegalese political history. The story, in fact, began with the founding President Léopold Sédar Senghor, who dismissed his close friend and Prime Minister. A similar pattern was later repeated under Presidents Abdou Diouf and Abdoulaye Wade. In some cases, the office of the Prime Minister was even suspended for nearly a decade,” Belouan told MWN.

This highlights how the crisis in Senegal cannot be understood outside broader patterns of executive power relations in the country.

The researcher emphasized the growing divergence between President Faye and Sonko, reflecting both political and institutional tensions at the highest summit of decision-making in the country.

“The current crisis is not only about personalities but about competing visions of governance under economic strain,” he elaborated.

He situates Senegal’s external position by noting Sonko’s critical stance toward certain African partners, including Morocco. For him, this situation contributed to heightened sensitivity in what could have ended up as a diplomatic rupture between Dakar and Senegal if Algeria had its way.

Sonko had already sparked controversy earlier this year in April, following his remarks defending the idea of an Africa composed of “55 states.” His statement, “L’Afrique, c’est 55 États,” triggered a strong backlash both in the Moroccan and Senegal media scenes. Converging reports noted that the remarks were widely perceived as politically loaded and came at a sensitive moment for Morocco-Senegal ties in the aftermath of the AFCON tensions. Senegal is traditionally known for its support of Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as a credible basis for resolving the Western Sahara dispute, in line with a growing number of countries that have opened representations in Morocco’s southern provinces.

Against this backdrop, Sonko’s 55-state comment was widely interpreted as contrary to Morocco’s territorial integrity and as an unnecessary politicization of a sensitive issue. Indeed, even in Senegal, it was not lost on seasoned observers of the long-standing Dakar-Rabat partnership that Sonko’s insensitive framing may have been aimed at provoking Rabat during a period of heightened regional tensions.

Further fueling concerns, another incident under his government involved a Senegalese television channel, Senegal 5, broadcasting a distorted map of Morocco that excluded its southern provinces. This move was also seen by observers as a deliberate and provocative act targeting Morocco’s territorial integrity, adding to a growing list of signals raising questions in Rabat about the direction of Dakar’s recent political messaging.

Despite the crisis, Belouan stressed the importance of Morocco-Senegal ties, stating that the situation in Senegal is an internal reflection of power and not a redefinition of partnerships.

He recalled the strong bond between the two countries, including economic interdependence and deep political cooperation.

The analyst argued that the historical ties between Morocco and Senegal are “structurally deeper and culturally embedded.”

The Moroccan academic concluded by suggesting that the appointment of a new prime minister could further contribute to easing tensions and restoring institutional balance, pointing to Morocco’s diplomatic posture, particularly following King Mohammed VI’s royal pardon.

Beyond being a profoundly humanitarian gesture, Belouan suggested, the royal pardon is a “signal of continuity” and de-escalation with a more diplomatically astute Senegalese government.

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