Harmattan AI is preparing its production capabilities in Rabat for Africa and the Middle East. The French unicorn wants to build a genuine industrial organization in Morocco capable of taking its autonomous military systems from prototype to serial production.
Spain will be able to arm its drones and modernize its software, but it will not be able to buy the experience Morocco has already accumulated. After nearly six years of operations, the FAR possess expertise that Madrid is only beginning to build.
Canadian manufacturer INKAS will present an artificial intelligence-guided drone and two armored military vehicles at the Marrakech Airshow. The show will take place from 7 to 10 October at the Royal Air Force base.
Already tasked with modernizing the Royal Air Force’s C-130s, American company L3Harris is preparing to arrive in Marrakech with another military aircraft: the SKY RAIDER II INTERNATIONAL, designed for armed surveillance, precision strikes and counter-drone operations.
A member of the Polisario Front was reportedly killed in an airstrike targeting suspicious movements east of the defense wall, in the Sahara. The operation is attributed to a drone belonging to the Royal Armed Forces (FAR).
Morocco now reportedly holds an advantage over Spain in a field that has become central to modern armed forces: drones. This is the assessment made by Francisco Bendala, a former Spanish lieutenant-colonel, who nevertheless acknowledges Madrid’s superiority in the air and at sea.
Before authorizing the sale of two naval drones to Morocco, the Dutch government examined the risk of them being used in the conflict in the Sahara. The Hague ultimately gave the green light, deeming such a scenario unlikely.
Rabat will host SOCAFRICA’s main annual symposium in December. US and Moroccan forces will bring together military delegations and industry representatives around drones, autonomous robots, exoskeletons, night-vision equipment, small arms and other technologies intended for special operations.
From Morocco to Saudi Arabia, Turkey has established its armed drones in the main Arab militaries. TB2, Akinci, Anka-S and Aksungur now equip countries that are sometimes rivals, turning Ankara into an indispensable supplier for the Maghreb and the Gulf.
Harmattan AI does not plan merely to manufacture its systems in Morocco. The defense company is developing a new fixed-wing drone in Rabat, whose trials will be conducted at several Moroccan sites, including vast areas located in the south of the country.
Following the United States, NATO is also counting on Morocco to train African military personnel. A session of the DEEP programme is to be organised in the kingdom by the end of 2026 or early 2027.
Commissioned by the Swedish Ministry of Defence, a FOI report finds that Morocco now has a “clear military and political advantage” in the Sahara. HIMARS, Apaches and drones have strengthened its capabilities against a Polisario judged incapable of dislodging it by force.