Casablanca school network Al Jabr lifts lockdown after vehicle-ramming threat

A school network in Casablanca lifted a security lockdown on Friday afternoon after receiving a telephone threat warning of a possible vehicle-ramming attack targeting two of its campuses, according to a letter sent to parents by the school administration.

The threat was received at around noon on November 13 and specifically targeted the Oasis campus and the secondary school in Bouskoura, Cyrille Loffroy, head of Al Jabr, said in the letter.

The administration immediately activated its emergency lockdown procedure, known as the Plan Particulier de Mise en Sécurité (PPMS), keeping students and staff inside the facilities to protect them from potential danger outside.

Because the threat originated externally, the school said it was not possible to allow parents to enter the premises to collect their children or permit students to leave while the lockdown remained in force.

Moroccan and French authorities were notified immediately, in accordance with the established protocol, Loffroy said.

Although the threat specifically concerned the Oasis and Bouskoura secondary campuses, the school extended the precautionary measures to its primary campuses and the Dar Bouazza site.

The administration thanked the National Police and Royal Gendarmerie for securing the areas around the different Al Jabr campuses, as well as French authorities for their monitoring and assistance during the alert.

The lockdown remained in place until local authorities authorized its lifting. After verifying that the telephone threat was a false alarm, the administration ended the measure at around 2 p.m., allowing school activities to resume.

Loffroy said some families subsequently chose to collect their children, while others allowed them to continue their school day, describing both decisions as legitimate given parents’ concerns.

He also thanked students and staff for remaining calm and following the emergency instructions throughout the lockdown, stressing that the safety of children and school personnel remained the institution’s priority.